Strengthening Primary Health Care to Improve Maternal Health Services

The #MaternalMonday Campaign of the Wellbeing Africa has canvassed the need to strengthen primary health care to improve maternal health services in Nigeria. Every single day, Nigeria loses about 2,300 under-five year olds and 145 women of childbearing age. Amongst other causes, the coverage and quality of health care services in Nigeria continue to fail women and children contributing to the high number of preventable deaths. While the Federal Ministry of Health's Integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (IMNCH) strategy was conceived to revitalise primary health care in every local government and considerably extend coverage of key maternal and child health in the country, there still remains a huge gap that needs to be closed. Participants who proffered best-practice solutions also noted the importance of public/private partnerships, inter-sectoral collaboration & community participation, which are key to reforming primary health care, and highlighted the importance of skill mix & capacity building as strategies to improve quality maternity services in primary health care.

#MaternalMonday, the popular weekly information campaign established by Her Excellency Toyin Saraki's Wellbeing Foundation Africa seeks to empower midwives, mothers and their newborns through demand creation for birth-preparedness, reducing the scourge of preventable maternal newborn and child mortality. Mrs Saraki, the Newborn Champion for Save The Children Nigeria, also serves as Global Goodwill Ambassador to the International Confederation of Midwives.

Signed: Communications

The Wellbeing Foundation Africa

Email: communications@wellbeingfoundationnig.org

Web: www.wbfafrica.org