NGO advocates constant training of community-based birth attendants
By Trek Africa Newspaper
Safer Hands Health Initiative (SHI), an NGO, has called for continuous training and empowerment of community-based birth attendants (CBAs) to improve maternal health outcomes and achieve Universal Health Coverage in Nigeria.
Mrs Adekemi Isiyemi-Vincent, Senior Programme Officer, SHI, said this at the NGO’s fourth Maternal Health Summit held in commemoration of the International Day for Maternal Health and Right on Thursday in Lagos.
Isiyemi-Vincent spoke on a paper titled “Leveraging the Role of Community-based Birth Attendants for Continued Maternal Care Provision and Reduction of Maternal Mortality in Southwest Nigeria.”
She said that CBAs’ play critical role that could not be under emphasised for continued provision of healthcare among vulnerable, hard-to-reach and lower socioeconomic populations.
Isiyemi-Vincent called for continuous engagement and capacity building for CBAs and healthcare providers, and maternal health advocates to maximise, expand and strengthen healthcare workforce.
She noted that the massive migration of healthcare professionals abroad led to significant reduction in healthcare accessibility, availability and increased cost of quality healthcare services.
According to her, the ripple effect increased patronage of CBAs, especially for vulnerable, hard-to-reach and lower socioeconomic communities.
She said that CBAs provide reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health information and services to 70 per cent of the reproductive population in the country.
“For every 10 woman who delivers in Nigeria today, only three will do so in a proper healthcare facility, all others end up in the community,” she said.
She, however, said that the CBAs were largely “unskilled”, significantly contributing to the high maternal mortality and morbidity rate in the country.
Isiyemi-Vincent said that SHI instituted “Training the Traditional/ Community-Based Birth Attendants (TTT) project” to mitigate this resultant effects and leverage on their existing human resource.
“This interventional project is aimed at up skilling CBAs on the best available practices for delivery and continued care of mother and child and other community based (RMNCH+) services,” she said.
She said that the project from 2020 till date, had significantly improved the knowledge and positive attitude of 260 CBAs across 10 communities in the south-west region of the country.
Isiyemi-Vincent called for improved funding and public-private partnerships to support and invest in maternal and child healthcare in communities, especially the hard-to-reach and underserved.
She recommended continuous Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health Education for all age groups across circles of influence.
NAN
