Safe Motherhood

WHARC embarks on series of programmatic efforts on safe motherhood which revolve round the reduction of maternal mortality in Nigeria. WHARC is implementing a project with funding support from the Venture Strategic for Health and Development (VHSD) California, USA in three LGS and four LGAs of Ondo state respectively to prevent and treat PPH in women in rural areas of Edo and Ondo state by building the capacity of local health care providers to properly dispense Misoprostol for the treatment and prevention of post-partum Hemorrhage and to ensure its availability in line with guidelines provided by the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) and World Health Organization (WHO).

The project is being implemented in Esan west, Esan central, and Igueben local government area of Edo State, and in Akure South, Owo, Ifedore and Akeoko North-West Local Government areas of Ondo state respectively.

Furthermore, the effectiveness of Traditional Birth Attendant was determined through their ability to provide quality maternal and health delivery in Edo State. WHARC in collaboration with the school of public Health at the University of California is working to determine and assess TBA’s effectiveness in administering Misoprostol for reducing the incidence of maternal mortality arising from post-partum Hemorrhage (PPH). This project is ongoing and consists of TBA’s from the Okokhuo intervention community. These TBA’s were taught to administer 1000 micrograms of misoprostol for prevention and treatment of PPH and to fill the study questionnaire. This intervention sites is in the same Local Government Areas as the control sites, (Igbogiobo community).

Moreover, WHARC is implementing a project titled policies and program in reducing maternal mortality in six states of Nigeria with funding support from the Macarthur foundation to strengthen advocacy activities aimed at promoting policies for maternal health and reducing maternal mortality in the six states (Kano, Enugu, Lagos, Cross River and Plateau), by indentifying the existing policies and programs relating to maternal health in the states, determining the impact of the policies on maternal health services delivery coverage and quality including cost, personnel, maternal health facilities and equipment in the states, determining the needs and perception of pregnant women and making necessary recommendations on the policies and programs aimed at reducing maternal mortality.

The project is designed to be implemented for a period of three years March 2009-Feb 2012 in three phases (research and data collection, report writing and advocacy visits) to improve the policies for maternal health with the general objective of reducing maternal morbidity and mortality.

WHARC indentifies strategies for implementing the project and it includes; formation of project teams in each of the states, held project debriefing workshop, conducted in-depth interviews with stakeholders in each of the states, conducted focus group discussions and the project is still on, and presently on the report writing stage.