By Mohamed T. Massaquoi
Despite being home to what’s arguably the best maternal health hospital in Sierra Leone, Pujehun is still recording one of the highest rates of maternal deaths in the country, which has left health authorities and campaigners concerned.
Latest statistics from the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) indicates that the district has recorded 18 deaths in the last eight months (January to August), which the campaigners say is unacceptable.
The figures from the Cumulative Maternal Deaths Report of the Health Ministry placed Pujehun on top of its southern neighbor Bonthe District, and Kono and Kailahun districts in the east, as well as Western Area Rural which recorded 5, 10, 15 and 11 deaths, respectively within the period.
While health campaigners say this is unacceptable, the district health authorities say it’s an improvement from previous years.
Sualiho Vergee Koroma, District Coordinator of the campaign group Health for All Coalition, described the situation as “alarming” and blamed it on the attitude of healthcare providers and poor drug distribution system which he said leads to recurrent drug stockout.
But District Medical Officer (DMO) Dr Steven Amara Ngegbai said in spite of the concerns that maternal deaths have increased, Pujehun was doing better compared to other districts. He noted that they recorded a higher number of deaths at the same time last year.
“We got 31 cases last year and we have to compare it to other districts and look at the factors involved,” Dr Ngegbai said on a telephone interview from Pujehun Town.
“Our statistics for this year is 70 percent better than other districts, but that doesn’t mean we are not concerned,” he added.
Dr Ngegbai’s view is supported by the chairman of the Health Committee in the Pujehun District Council, Mohamed Saffa Puma.
But for Koroma, the activist, the excuses are unacceptable.
“We have the best maternity hospital in the country. But the problem we are faced with at the moment, which has contributed to this year’s alarming rate in maternal deaths, is the issue of late referral and the late supply of Free Health Care drugs to the district,” he said. He explained that since they received a supply of the Free Health Care drugs in January, which was distributed to all the 83 Peripheral Health Units, the next supply only came in on 14 August.
“Our Peripheral Health Units went out of drugs for nearly three months,” he said.
The activist also blamed the operators at the National Call Centre for causing “unnecessary” delay in dispatching ambulances when community people demand for them.
“Most of the workers at the National Call Centre are not clinicians, they lack health knowledge and therefore they have been downplaying health concerns from our district,” Koroma said, citing a recent incident at the Bandajuma Sowa Health Centre where the people were forced to transport a pregnant woman through a 17-mile distance on a motor bike after the call centre attendants engaged the health workers in a prolonged discussion they couldn’t stand.
Besides providing free services to patients, the hospital’s management implement programs designed to encourage locals to visit hospital.
Councilor Puma, who represents Ward 367, also partly blamed the situation on “negative attitude” of the healthcare providers which he said is discouraging people from visiting health facilities.
The district health authorities though believe a major part of the problem is apathy by the local people.
“The issue of maternal deaths is a difficult situation because the community people are not willing to access hospitals,” said Dr Ngegbai.
“Understanding health related messages by locals in the district, taking into account the prevailing traditional beliefs and cultural values, is making it very difficult for us to reduce the rate of maternal deaths,” he added.
Dr Ngegbai also argued that the numbers of deaths in Pujehun were high because the hospital is an attraction to neighbouring districts, particularly Bonthe, which he said has added pressure on the hospital’s meager resources. He noted that some of the deaths recorded in Pujehun are also from these neighbouring districts.
The DMO said as part of effort to address the situation, they have been engaging the community people through the local radio station. He said as recent as on Saturday, they held a meeting with all the 14 Paramount Chiefs in the district, where they discussed the possible factors leading to maternal deaths and ways of addressing them.
© 2019 Politico Online
