Belize celebrates World Health Day
“Make Every Mother and Child Count” is the focus for this year’s World Health Day. Today, the occasion was marked in Belize with an official ceremony and an exhibition hosted at the Matron Roberts Health Clinic.
Dr. Kathleen Israel, Country Rep., PAHO/WHO
?The focus today is on making every child and mother count and that is because worldwide there is a very high incidence of maternal deaths and child deaths, in particular for children under five years of age, but more importantly at a higher rate for children under one year of age.?
Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
The Pan American Health Organization and The World Health Organization Country Representative, Doctor Kathleen Israel, says Belize has made tremendous strides in reducing child and maternal mortality, but it is nowhere near the desired level.
Dr. Kathleen Israel
?In order to correct the problem, the effort needs to be collective. We know that the church is very influential, we know that there is a role for the private sector, we know that there is a role for N.G.O.?s, we know that there is a role for government, we know that there is a role for families, community leaders and we all have to come together because it is a very challenging thing.?
The Ministry of Health reports that since 1987, maternal and infant mortality for Belize has decreased, but over the past five years the situation has become unstable. Doctor Natalia Largaespada-Beer is the technical advisor for maternal and child health.
Dr. Natalia Largaespada-Beer, Technical Advisor, M.O.H.
?The maternal mortality ratio for Belize is forty deaths for hundred thousand live births in 2003, and it was sixty-seven in 2004. In 2003 we had three maternal deaths, and in 2004 that sixty-seven ratio represents five maternal deaths. The under-five mortality rate, which is one of the Millennium Development Goal indicators, was seventeen point nine in 2003, and we have an increase in 2004 with nineteen per thousand live births.?
Doctor Marcelo Coyi, an obstetrician for over twenty-five years and a member of the Safe Motherhood Committee, strongly believes that while gathering statistics is important, there is a need for a department of research within the Ministry of Health
Dr. Marcelo Coyi, Member, Safe Motherhood Committee
?To evaluate and do research so that we can then do local solutions to our healthcare problems using resources that we have, using the facilities, the healthcare providers that we have, and knowing our patients. What we offer has to be tailored to what the patients need. I think if we just provide services without evaluating it, without research, basically we might be losing a lot of money in that area.?
Doctor Coyi says one main factor that contributes to maternal mortality is that many women do not seek care during pregnancy until it is time to give birth.
Dr. Marcelo Coyi
?The patients do not believe it is important that they access healthcare when they are pregnant. A lot of them believe that they can do it at home and just go to the hospital and deliver. A lot of time is then loss in looking and preventing complications and maternal mortality.?
Dr. Natalia Largaespada-Beer
?Both problems, maternal and infant deaths is very complicated, it is not so easy. It?s not like vaccines, like immunisation; you vaccine the child and not care what condition the child live in, it has a protection against immune preventable diseases. But maternal deaths and infant deaths have to deal with all other parts of the environment where these people are living. You have economical issues, gender equity issues, you have domestic violence, under nutrition–both maternal and child–you have cultural inaccessibility, geographical inaccessibility, so all those factors together contribute to the maternal and infant deaths, because the health system is there and the staff is there, but still we have cases that are reaching too late.?
Minister of Health Vildo Marin says his government remains committed to the proper healthcare and well being of children and mothers; however, it will take a committed effort by everyone to help meet that goal.
Vildo Marin, Minister of Health
?Well certainly we want Belizeans to focus on treating our women and children with more respect. Certainly, we want the violence against women and children to be nonexistent in our country; we want our fathers to be more responsible to their wives and to their children. We want to see the number of disunited families be lessened. So we want tightly-knit family units, we want our families to be able to access health, a health system that is affordable and that is meeting to their demands, and certainly we from the government side are committed to ensuring that we impart good services to our women whenever they get pregnant, and also to give the specialised services to our children so as to lessen the mortality rate on infant and also maternal.?
During this morning?s ceremony Dr. Israel presented to Minister Marin a copy of the 2005 World Health Book Report. Jacqueline Woods for News Five.
