Sayma Akter, (pseudonym) 28, took all the necessary medical care during her whole pregnancy period, but decided to give birth to her first child at home instead of the nearest hospital. During the delivery, her child got stuck for some time midway, leaving the baby much weak, with respiratory problems.
Sayma’s family members ultimately rushed the mother and the baby to the nearest hospital, where the attending doctors referred the both to specialized hospitals in the district town, saying it would be difficult for the baby to survive without specialized treatments as he is very weak and finding it hard to breath.
“Government has set up different hospitals, clinics in district, upazila and even village-level to evade the problems usually faced by new mothers and children. These health facilities have all the necessary equipment and experts to provide health care to women during their pregnancy period and delivery time. In spite of these, many are giving birth in their homes, which can be fatal for the mothers and their newborns,” Programme Manager of “Matrisastho Kormosuchi” of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr Ajijul Hakim told BSS.
Experts said they consider a baby aged between 1 to 28 days as newborn and this period is very critical for the baby.
“A newborn can die for different reasons. There are three main reasons, one, any kind of infection, two, breathing problems, three, diarrhea. Apart from these, if the mother is underage, her baby will be at risk to die. An underage mother doesn’t have the appropriate physical condition to hold a baby in her womb and deliver it properly. She cannot take care of herself,” said Prof Dr Anwara Begum.
The former Dhaka Medical College Hospital Gynaecology & Obstetrics Department head further said that the expectant mother has to take iron, calcium and folic acid supplements during her pregnancy period and has to take proper rest or sleep a total of 12 hours in a day. Prof Dr Anwara Begum said many expectant mothers suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, and blood deficiency, which can ultimately lead to postpartum complications.
Talking about how to bring down the risk of neonatal death, Bangladesh Neonatal Forum President and Paediatrics Professor Dr Tahmina Begum said a newborn can die for different reasons.
“To avoid this, proper care of an expectant mother and during her labour is much important. If an expectant mother has asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes or thyroid, she has to take treatment. If a baby is born premature or underweight, he or she has to be taken into an incubator to keep him warm. If the incubator remains unavailable, the family must take advice from the doctor how to keep the baby worm,” Professor Dr Tahmina Begum said.
The paediatrics professor further said it is important to keep the baby clean to avoid risks of infection. She opined for using appropriate kit for cutting umbilical cord, wrapping the newborn with clean and hygienic clothing, sanitizing hands before taking the baby into arms, among other steps to keep the baby safe.
Save the Children, Bangladesh’s Strengthening National Midwifery Program
(SNMP) Senior Manager Dr Moshtak Ahmed said now same medical care is given to new mother and her baby as like in the developed countries.”We apply appropriate drops on the cord stump so that no infection takes place. The babies, who are born premature or underweight, are brought under Kangaroo Mother Service. We have given necessary training to health experts in each level to keep the new mothers and their babies’ safe,” he added. All the experts the correspondent has contacted emphasized on proper medical care during pregnancy to prevent neonatal mortality and keep the new mother safe.
