Women in Underserved Communities Face Risks during Pregnancy and Childbirth

WiRED Offers Modules on Pregnancy Complications
and Postpartum Hemorrhage

BY ALLISON KOZICHAROW; EDITED BY BERNICE BORN

Women in low-resource areas are particularly vulnerable to complications during pregnancy and to postpartum hemorrhage. Timely and appropriate management can prevent suffering and loss, yet high-risk communities lack the appropriate knowledge and skilled medical personnel.

 

WiRED International created our Mother and Child Health Series of 24 health learning modules so that women, their families and community health workers can prepare for a healthy pregnancy, delivery and the early years of their child. Several modules address what can go wrong: two of them are pregnancy complications and postpartum hemorrhage.

 

WiRED’s Pregnancy Complications Module covers health issues already existing before pregnancy (e.g., high blood pressure, HIV, obesity, diabetes,) and those arising during pregnancy and childbirth (e.g., anemia, preeclampsia, depression, miscarriage, infections).

 

Postpartum hemorrhage — or severe bleeding after birth — is the largest direct cause of maternal deaths. WiRED’s Postpartum Hemorrhage Module covers normal bleeding vs. postpartum hemorrhage, causes of postpartum hemorrhage, uterine atony, trauma, retention of tissue, thrombin, risk factors, signs and symptoms, diagnosis, treatments and prevention.

 

WiRED believes that skilled care before, during and after childbirth can save the lives of women and newborn babies. To prepare trainers in Mother and Child Health, WiRED offers a certificate for people who successfully complete a study of the 24 modules in the series.

 

Read WiRED’s modules to learn more.

 

 

Sobering Statistics


  • Every day, approximately 830 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth.
  • 99% of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries.
  • Maternal mortality is higher in women living in rural areas and among poorer communities.
  • Young adolescents face a higher risk of complications and death as a result of pregnancy than other women.
  • Every year about 14 million women around the world suffer from postpartum hemorrhage.
  • Maternal deaths following cesarean sections in low- and middle-income countries are 100 times higher than in high-income countries, with up to one third of all babies dying.

Source: World Health Organization

 

 


WiRED’s Mother and Child Health Series

 

WiRED’s Mother and Child Health Series provides a 24-part comprehensive training program to assist families, caregivers, community health workers and others with subjects related to the following four topics: Before Pregnancy, Pregnant Now, Labor and Delivery, and Parenting. The Mother and Child Health series will be used by schools, clinics and hospitals and nongovernmental organizations that help families prepare for a healthy pregnancy, delivery and the years of childhood up to age five.

 

WiRED embraces WHO’s maternal, newborn and child health principle, “Continuum of Care,” in which skilled care during pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period prevents complications and allows for their early detection and appropriate management.