AFRICA/SIERRA LEONE - Safe Birth after Ebola in a Country with the highest maternal mortality rate in the world

Freetown (Agenzia Fides) - Sierra Leone is the country with the highest maternal mortality rate in the world. About one mother out of 100 cannot survive the birth of her child. In this dramatic scenery Ebola has caused nearly 4,000 deaths to date. The Country was declared Ebola-free (see Fides 06/11/2015) only on 7 November. Now, next to the direct losses caused by the epidemic, there are also collateral damages.
The main victims are the hospitals and health centers, closed for the massive loss of health professionals and the fear of contagion, leaving entire populations without access to basic health services. Doctors with Africa Cuamm decided to support the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital (PCMH) in Freetown, accepting the invitation of the health authorities of Sierra Leone. We are talking about the main maternal-child hospital in Freetown. The only health facility in the district with 150 beds, almost 9,000 inpatients and over 5 thousand births were assisted in 2014, and can offer quality care in obstetric and neonatal emergencies.
Today the hospital is no longer able to provide health services on an ongoing basis: after 3 deaths due to Ebola, one ward was closed and 32 staff members were quarantined. The shortage of drugs is particularly acute and continues to worsen the quality of care. The great challenge of Cuamm in this context is as always to improve the quality of care by sending qualified personnel, specialists in obstetrics and gynecology, forming local staff, medical students and trainees in the hospital and providing equipment and essential drugs. In addition, Cuamm aims to develop an effective system of reference (ambulance transport) in the Western Area for obstetric emergencies. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 15/12/2015)

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