Sierra Leone – Sierra Leone, country of western Africa, has hosted a meeting in Freetown bringing together over 80 maternal and child health experts from around the world to discuss strategic plans to improve midwifery education.
The health meeting held in Freetown, Sierra Leone saw the attendance and participation of experts including health authorities of Sierra Leone, Malawi, Bolivia, Pakistan and India, World Health Organization (WHO) and other global health partners.
According to the World Health Organization, preventable death of mothers and young children is still a big public health challenge in many low and middle-income countries including the participating countries.
WHO Sierra Leone Country Office announced on its website that the meeting focused on finding workable strategies that will help strengthen the quality of midwifery education and training with the aim to improve standards that will help curb preventable death of mothers and newborn babies.
The WHO Country Office further said that some of the major outcomes of the meeting will lead to improved midwifery coordination, regulation, capacities and functionality in Sierra Leone and the other participating countries.
In 2010, Sierra Leone introduced the Free Health Care Initiative to enhance universal access to quality health care for pregnant and lactating mothers and children under the age of 5 years. The Initiative and other national strategies have contributed in improving coverage of essential services for these categories of beneficiaries.
In addition, WHO is working very closely with multiple partners including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other United Nations agencies as well as Donors and Development partners to support Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Health and Sanitation.
The World Health Organization and partners are collaborating to advocate, mobilize resources and act jointly to reach the required number of trained and qualified midwifes and related health professionals that Sierra Leone needs.
Through the financial support of MSD for Mothers Foundation, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA and other partners, countries will receive technical assistance to implement programmes aimed at enhancing public-private sector partnership.
Governments were also urged to use public-private partnerships to bolster investment in strengthening human resources and institutional capacities to enable health facilities to provide optimal quality health care including obstetric care when and where they are needed to achieve universal health coverage.
“We must be intentional and challenge ourselves to improve institutional capacities for midwifery education and training to transform health services delivery that will save the lives of women during childbirth and of children at the start of life,” said Dr Steven Shongwe, WHO Representative in Sierra Leone.
Dr Shongwe emphasized the need for strategic investment in human resources for health, equipment, medicines and supplies, observing that Sierra Leone has a lot of experiences to share on maternal and child mortality.
He further said that Sierra Leone has a lot to learn from experiences and lessons from other parts of the world to help curb the perennial and unacceptably high death of women in childbearing age and babies, adding that countries have evidence-based policies, strategies, guidelines, standards, and best practice to change the narrative.
Liked this article? Sign up to receive our regular email newsletters, focused on Africa and World’s healthcare industry, directly into your inbox. SUBSCRIBE HERE
