Postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) has emerged as the major reason behind the spurt in maternal deaths recently flagged by the health department in four districts of Punjab. PPH is excessive uterine bleeding after giving birth.
According to Punjab health minister Dr Balbir Singh, PHH has emerged as the major reason behind the deaths even as the department was still thoroughly studying the reports sent by civil surgeons.
“Our reports are suggesting that PHH is the reason behind most of the deaths. It’s not a sudden spike as Punjab already has a high maternal mortality ratio (MMR). But taking lessons from these deaths, we are going to review our treatment protocol and are going to add the use of uterine balloon tamponade which is effective in stopping uterine bleeding, thus providing an alternative to hysterectomy,” the health minister said.
The issue came to light when Punjab witnessed a sudden spike in maternal mortality with 87 deaths reported during pregnancy, childbirth and post-childbirth in three months between April and June, sending the state health department into a tizzy with the authorities seeking reports from civil surgeons.
Following the reports, the director health and family welfare shot off a letter to the civil surgeons to study the reasons behind of high number of maternal deaths in four districts — Amritsar 16, Tarn Taran 10, Gurdaspur and Ferozepur seven each between April and June.
{{/usCountry}}Following the reports, the director health and family welfare shot off a letter to the civil surgeons to study the reasons behind of high number of maternal deaths in four districts — Amritsar 16, Tarn Taran 10, Gurdaspur and Ferozepur seven each between April and June.
{{/usCountry}}After the reports, the health minister ordered the department officials to study the cause of deaths thoroughly.
The development was seen as a setback to the efforts of the state government to promote institutional deliveries to check MMR.
According to the department’s findings till now, it cannot be ascertained if the number of deaths was high or not, as the data for live births in this quarter was not available yet.
A senior department official claimed that the number of maternal deaths in the year 2021-22 was 166, whereas in 2022-23, it was 100. “Number of maternal deaths in 2023-24 was 87 for the first quarter. Comparison data shows a decrease in the number of maternal deaths. However, since we don’t have data for live births in this quarter, these numbers become insignificant as the state has to calculate MMR and not the number of maternal deaths,” the official said.
According to recently released data by the registrar general of India, Punjab improved the MMR by 14%, with maternal deaths coming down from 129 to 105 per lakh live births in 2022.
Punjab had been giving thrust on institutional deliveries, especially in government-run institutions, and had been applauded by various agencies for the successful implementation of facilities in the field of maternal and childcare.