Mauritius to improve maternal, new-born and child health
Port-Louis, Mauritius (PANA) – Mauritian health authorities on Wednesday launched a Maternal and Child Health Handbook, aiming at empowering women to make informed decisions about their own health and pregnancy.
The Handbook, which will be distributed among parents and aspiring parents, is said to be an effective tool in promoting and protecting the health of mothers and children and will facilitate equitable access to primary health care.
It integrates information about maternal and child health into one booklet, namely, pregnancy, labour, immunisation, breastfeeding, nutrition, child growth and development and diseases.
Speaking at the launch, Health and Wellness Minister Kailesh Jagutpal said that the Handbook will also allow the public health service to better manage pregnancies and deliveries and ascertain that both mother and child receive the best medical care during the determining year of pregnancy.
He said with an ageing population, the island in 2019 registered more than 12,800 live births representing a decrease as compared to precedent years and this trend is likely to continue.
“It is necessary to try and reverse the tendency but at the same time ascertain that new-borns come to this world in perfect health,” he added.
Citing official figures, he indicated that infant mortality rate stood was at 14.3 per thousand live births in 2019 as compared to 13.8 in 2018.
He said that this increase is due to the fact that nowadays in cases of preterm deliveries, critically ill babies are being given a better chance at life.
The Minister highlighted that the neonatal intensive care units have been upgraded across the island.
He said about 100 doctors and 100 nurses have been trained to work in the neonatal ICUs.
According to him, a revolutionary cooling therapy known as hypothermia treatment has been introduced for babies with birth asphyxia and those who are critically ill at birth.
Mr Jagutpal said all the five regional hospitals in Mauritius are equipped with a cooling device. “This treatment is crucial in reducing risks of cerebral palsy and babies undergoing this treatment are also less likely to suffer from aggravated health problems while growing up.”
The Minister said that the Health and Wellness Ministry will continue to upgrade its existing services and introduce latest technologies and boost awareness and prevention strategies.
-0- PANA NA/MA 25Feb2021
