Two-fold spike in maternal deaths in Punjab in a month alarms health officials

The health department has started imparting basic antenatal care training to the doctors of Aam Aadmi Clinics and community health officers apparently to identify the high-risk pregnant women.

Amid increasing maternal deaths, the Punjab health department has intensified its efforts to save the lives of high-risk pregnant women. Civil surgeons, district health and family welfare officer besides senior medical officers have already been directed to make random calls to the listed high-risk pregnant women to check if quality care is being provided to them.

Punjab saw 14 maternal deaths in April and 28 such cases in May.

The department said there was a gap in identifying such women and their management, leading to mortality among them. Consequent upon the gap, the department has already started imparting basic antenatal care training to the doctors of Aam Aadmi Clinics and community health officers at health and wellness centres apparently to identify the high-risk pregnant women.

As per the account of the health department, 14 maternal deaths were reported in Punjab in April. Alarmingly, the monthly death count increased to 28 in May.

Notably, Punjab is among the 11 burden states, along with Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Haryana, which do have high maternal mortality ratio (MMR). Punjab recorded 403 maternal deaths between April last year and March this year.

Dr Abninav Trikha, director, National Health Mission (NHM), said, “Punjab’s maternal mortality ratio was above 120 a few years ago. It came down to 105 in the last survey. Despite the decline, it is still above the national average. This is obviously a concern as MMR is a key health indictor.”

Dr Trikha further said regular death reviews were being conducted. Maternal death review meetings are being personally monitored by the principal secretary of the health department, he added.

Dr Hatinder Kaur, director, Health and Family Welfare, said, “There has been a little rise in maternal deaths over the past few months. Therefore we have already increased our efforts. Apart from making random calls to high-risk pregnant women, we have asked our doctors for mandatory anemia monitoring for all pregnant women in the OPDs. Along with this, we have directed for one check-up of pregnant women in each trimester by a medicine specialist.”

According to her, she has directed civil surgeons for having collaborations with the private medical colleges, hospitals and nursing homes to improve the maternal health outcomes.