Sultan foundation to check maternal deaths with misoprostol
In its bid to pursue the eradication of maternal mortality in Nigerian, the Sultan Foundation for Peace and Development has organised a two-day workshop on integration and supportive supervision for community distribution of misoprostol, a prescription medication, with a view to ending the scourge. Speaking at the workshop, the coordinator of the foundation, Malam Aminu […]
In its bid to pursue the eradication of maternal mortality in Nigerian, the Sultan Foundation for Peace and Development has organised a two-day workshop on integration and supportive supervision for community distribution of misoprostol, a prescription medication, with a view to ending the scourge.
Speaking at the workshop, the coordinator of the foundation, Malam Aminu Inuwa, said the foundation has a duty as an non-governmental organisation (NGO) to support the less privileged in the communities and to find a way of reducing maternal mortality in Northern Nigeria.
According to him, “By this workshop, we want to educate and rub minds with the state focal persons representing the foundation in the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and reproductive health officers of the Primary Health Care Development Agencies (PHCDA) in the states with a view to finding a common ground where we can distribute and monitor the use of misoprostol tablet for women when they go into labour to reduce maternal mortality in that state.”
On why the emphasis on misoprostol, he said, “The rate of maternal mortality is huge in northern Nigeria so we want to reduce the number to the barest minimum and we are working in three locations in each state because we want the states synergy to work so that we can reach as many women as possible.”
The Assistant Representative, Reproductive Health of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Audu Alayande, said UNFPA is collaborating with the foundation because they have the structure through the Northern Emir’s Forum and have the influence to ensure that members of the community have access to near facilities and technologies.
“Bleeding is not the only cause of maternal mortality, we have unsafe abortions, infection and other causes but we cannot give the drugs to communities to administer on their own unlike what we are doing with misoprostol which can save the woman’s life at least before she gets to the next referral centre.”
“The drug is very accessible and affordable, it is being sold at N300, but UNFPA is donating the drug free of charge and there are other NGO’s that are willing to give more of the drug in a bid to eradicating maternal mortality in Nigeria.”
Also, Dr. Mustapha Danimo from Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH) said, “About 830 women are said to die every minute in the world due to pregnancy or child birth. Bleeding is one of the major causes; others are unsafe abortions, infection and high blood pressure. We are trying to look at the use of the drug which has been identified as a game changer when it comes to controlling bleeding in women that have just given birth.”