By Fatou Dahaba
Professor Adama Sallah, Chairman of the Paediatric Association of The Gambia, has said that infant morbidity and mortality statistics remain grim in many developing countries, signaling the precarious conditions that still prevail in the communities.
He revealed that about fifty percent of infant mortality still occurs in the neonatal period, and fifty percent of neonatal deaths occur during the first week of life.
He made these remarks during the association’s second annual international conference on optimizing maternal and neonatal health in The Gambia, held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara Conference Center in Bijilo.
He further stated that the situation strongly suggests that the focus should be on providing the needed health care for mothers and their babies for improved survival and well-being.
Prof Sallah disclosed that in many developing countries, a significant number of pregnant mothers do not receive adequate health care, and many deliveries are still being carried out by people with little or no training. “Many newborn babies still do not receive the medical care they need at the point of delivery in communities.”
The perinatal period constitutes less than 0.5 percent of the average life span, yet there are more deaths within this period than during the next three decades of life, he highlighted.
Additionally, he expressed the need for the mother’s health as it is linked to the survival and health of her children, urging for maternal health during pregnancy and safe delivery to be given the highest priority in developing countries.
To understand where the nation is and how to get there, he outlined the need for a quality data collection system and perinatal data with a reliable index of the quality of antenatal obstetric and neonatal care, as most deaths in the perinatal period are the result of complications of pregnancy and childbirths.
Prof. Sallah announced that the first neonatal care unit is on the verge of being built as its own unit. However, he outlined that while they are impressed with this development, it is not enough to serve the entire country. He foresees similar units being built in other major hospitals across the country.
Dr Mustapha Bittaye, Chief Medical Doctor of the EFSTH, said death at the neonatal level needs to be impacted by interventions during pregnancy, which might be linked to reducing perinatal death.
He added that the hospital will work with the association to provide the necessary and optimal training for developing treatment protocols or guidelines.
Dr. Nafisa Biute Shafique, UNICEF Country Representative and the keynote speaker, reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to uplifting children and mothers’ challenges in accessing a good healthcare system.
She highlights rural women’s challenges in accessing good-quality healthcare services, which she links to low-qualified, skilled, and trained nurses who often pose difficulties for these women in accessing good healthcare services for their children and newborn babies.
