Globe And Mail Examines Lack Of Prenatal Care Access In Southern Afghanistan

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Pediatrics / Children's Health;  Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 17 Jun 2008 - 9:00 PST

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Toronto's Globe and Mail on Friday examined the often dangerous journeys pregnant women in parts of rural southern Afghanistan are taking to obtain prenatal care. Afghanistan has one of the highest infant and maternal mortality rates in the world -- about 24,000 women die annually in the country after childbirth. Health care services for pregnant women and infants have "vastly" improved since the Taliban regime was overthrown in late 2001, but many women living in "restive" regions in the southern part of the country say the situation has worsened, according to the Globe and Mail.

The Afghan government has committed itself to reducing maternal mortality by 20% by 2020, and officials have bolstered programs to train midwives and facilitate access to female medical staff. However, the lack of security in certain areas remains a barrier, the Globe and Mail reports. Abdul Qayum Pakhla, director of health for the southern Kandahar province, said that four districts in the province do not have health clinics because of security. He added that several medical workers in recent years have either gone missing or been killed by insurgents.

According to Shala, a pregnant woman from the southern Kandahar province who was interviewed by the Globe and Mail, some women in rural areas do not visit a hospital or clinic throughout their entire pregnancies. Untrained midwives often assist with home births, and complications such as bleeding and hypertension often result in death for either the pregnant woman or infant.

Pakhla said that Kandahar City, where pregnant women have access to no-cost deliveries and medicines, has become the province's health care center. The Canadian government has spent at least 350,000 Canadian dollars, or about $340,000, to support maternal health programs run by the Afghan government and UNICEF, some of which is going toward building a residential obstetric care facility in Kandahar City. The facility is expected to open this summer and treat pregnant women waiting to give birth in a nearby government hospital (O'Neill, Globe and Mail, 6/13).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

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