Maternal Health in Uganda

One of the main areas of emphasis at the KIHEFO clinic in Kabale, Uganda is that of maternal health. This focus comes as a result of the high rates of maternal mortality in Uganda. Uganda has the 20th highest maternal mortality rate in the world, with an average of 16 mothers dying daily from birth complications. We were able to spend a day at the maternal clinic learning about the ways in which KIHEFO is working to lower the maternal mortality rate and improve the care given to mothers and their newborns.

One of the main policies instigated by KIHEFO to improve the medical treatment for mothers and their newborns is mandatory HIV testing at a woman’s first antenatal visit. HIV/AIDS can be spread in two different ways, one of which is mother to child transmission during childbirth. This transmission can be prevented so long as the HIV positive mother is up to date on her antiretroviral medications and her viral count is at zero. As a result of requiring mothers to be tested for HIV/AIDS at their first antenatal visit to the clinic, the cases of mother to child transmission at KIHEFO is almost completely under control.

Another policy that KIHEFO has instituted to improve maternal health in the area is that of providing every expecting mother that comes to the clinic with a delivery kit. This delivery kit contains the essential items in providing a mother with a safe delivery in case she is unable to make it to a health facility before giving birth. This is a big problem because the majority of the Ugandan population works in agriculture, spreading out the population in small villages that are far away from the nearest health facility. This issue is especially prevalent in Kabale because of the mountainous landscape of the area, which makes many villages hard to reach by any mode of transportation larger than a motorbike. These delivery kits provide women who live far away from health facilities with instructions and supplies for a safe and clean delivery to prevent complications and infections of both the mother and the newborn.