Expecting mothers & newborn babies: Integrated policy urged to deal with health issues

Participants at consultative seminar have stressed the need for integrated strategy to tackle with reproductive health issues of expecting young mothers and their newborn babies, particularly during natural disaster situation. The expecting young mothers and their newborn child were much vulnerable during any calamity conditions, despite the fact, their productive health issues and unmet needs ignored, the participants observed.
Speaking at consultative meeting of 'Reproductive Health (RH) Working Group KPK', organised by Rahnuma-Family Planning Association of Pakistan (FPAP) at its regional office here on Monday, they suggested that the Provincial Disaster Management Authority bring clarity about its preparedness about coping with reproductive health issues, being faced by pregnant women and newborn child in calamity-hit areas of the province. They viewed that the expecting mothers and infant were much vulnerable during natural disaster situation, and their unmet needs along with reproductive health issues, should be addressed on priority basis, they stressed.
They also emphasised the proper co-ordination amongst health department, partners and other clusters for deletion of duplication in initiatives for resolution of RH issues. Besides, Regional Director, Rahnuma-FPAP, Gohar Zaman, provincial president of the association, Haji Sattar Gul, and Deputy Director (Reproductive Health), from Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Dr Saeed Gul, a large number of representatives from family planning organisation and institutions and non-governmental organisations participated in the seminar.
Gohar Zaman said that the issue of reproductive health is completely neglected in disaster situations and emphasised that a comprehensive and co-ordinated plan to timely cope with reproductive health issues, particularly in any natural and manmade calamity conditions. He viewed the mother and infant mortality rate is still very high, due to complication and severe issues during pregnancy period.
Dr Saeed Gul said it was essential to identify area and scope of working before the formulation of holistic strategy for tackling with productive health issues. He, therefore, asked the all family planning organisations and intuitions along with non-governmental organisations to come up with their structural mechanism and defined scope of their working among nine reproductive health elements/sections, which would enable to formulate joint strategy to handle the RH issue under the co-ordinated efforts.