Minister Binagwaho rallies for investment in newborn health

All countries should aim at reducing child mortality to less than 10 per 1,000 live birth by 2035. The call is part of a plan drafted at the end of the World Health Assembly held in Geneva last week. The Assembly, an annual conference looked at global health issues and brought together health officials from over 100 countries. The Minister for Health, Dr Agnes Binagwaho, was one of the participants. “Once the international community declares that no child anywhere in the world should be born to die, we can ensure that future progress in maternal and child health will always extend to newborn babies,” explained Binagwaho in a paper written jointly with Melinda Gates and published in an international health journal, The Lancet. This should happen through investment in high-quality care before, during and after childbirth for every pregnant woman and newborn, according to the plan. Almost 3 million babies die in their first month of life and 2.6 million babies are stillborn, but most of these deaths can be prevented through simple measures, explained Binagwaho. “Many newborn deaths could have been prevented with existing interventions,” she explained. “These babies are not dying because we lack knowledge to save them. They are dying because we are paying little attention and not investing enough in their safety,” she added. We can save newborn lives by breastfeeding and immediately drying and stimulating the baby after birth, said Binagwaho. Even something as simple as promoting skin-to-skin contact with the mother can help regulate the baby’s temperature, heart rate and breathing, she added. Another important aspect is to promote the use of skilled attendants while giving birth. Rwanda has already made progress in the area of infant mortality. According to a recently released report by the World Health Organisation, infant mortality rate has fallen from 108 babies out of every 1,000 in 2000 to 39 in 2012. This rate of progress puts Rwanda on track to meet the goals of the new plan. However, a lot needs to be done to ensure that women give birth in the presence of skilled health attendants. According to the same report, 98 per cent of women go for antenatal care at least once, but only 69 per cent of births are attended to by a skilled health professional.

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Minister Binagwaho rallies for investment in newborn health