The cases presented were of women ages 20, 36 and 25 years old respectively. Though age and circumstances were varied, there were commonalities—they are from the Municipality of San Luis in Agusan del Sur and they died right after giving birth.
The stories of these women were told during a gathering of provincial, municipal and barangay local officials of San Luis and some 40 women and men residents of the town for a Maternal Death Review, where they discussed how systems can be improved to save the lives of women giving birth.
The discussions highlighted key issues that contributed to maternal deaths in the municipality. One of these was the reluctance of pregnant women to go for prenatal check-ups because of the distance between their homes and the nearest health facility.
In one of the maternal death cases presented, the woman lived in Barangay Binicalan and the health center was 15 kilometers away from where she lived.
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, with support from the European Union, worked hand-in-hand with the Municipal Health Office of San Luis to revive the village health center in Binicalan to address the need for more accessible health care services, especially for pregnant women. The municipal government complemented the assistance by deploying midwives to the barangay.
San Luis is covered by the EU-funded Indigenous People Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and Nutrition (IPMNCHN) Project of UNFPA.
Findings from the MDR are expected to lead to critical changes that would further improve the local health delivery system from the provincial to community levels. Among the actions recommended were to put in place a coordination system among health workers and LGU to track pregnant women; provision of transport services by the barangay during emergencies; early and better referral system; regular and more frequent visits by midwives; and counselling on birth spacing.
To augment services provided at the barangay health station, there are plans to put up additional health centers insitios to bring health services closer to more people.
The IPMNCHN Project has helped Barangay Binicalan establish an emergency transport system by providing four motorcycles. The Indigenous People’s Organizations gave the Rural Health Unit of San Luis a dedicated motorcycle to transport midwives to far-flung villages.
The MDR, among other interventions, is a step to make zero maternal deaths happen through analysis and commitment. It is time to show that we value the lives of the very people giving life.
