The Opposition People’s National Party is calling for urgent action from the government to address what it says is the escalating crisis concerning maternal and neonatal health care in the country.
In a statement on Friday, the PNP says recent statistics and firsthand accounts reveal alarming trends that require immediate attention.
Mahiri Stewart tells us more.
Health Minister, Dr. Chris Tufton has confirmed that there’s been a sharp increase in maternity deaths in recent years.
He’s attributed this to the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise in non-communicable diseases.
According to the PNP, the maternal mortality rate in the Southern Regional Health Authority has skyrocketed from 27 per 100,000, to 273 per 100,000.
The PNP says the tenfold increase in the rate at which pregnant mothers are dying is alarming and regressive.
The party says that tragic fact cannot be dismissed with dazzling public relations and vague answers attempting to shift responsibility.
It’s calling on the government to provide transparent explanations and implement effective strategies to address this alarming trend.
The PNP is also calling on the government to address the critical shortage of Intensive Care Unit space and train personnel to operate ventilators in hospitals across the island.
It says many of the ventilators are allocated to operating theatres and cannot be repurposed for emergency respiratory cases.
The PNP says the government must ensure that all hospitals have both the equipment and trained personnel necessary to provide critical care.
The party is also sounding the alarm regarding Jamaica’s declining birth rate, which has fallen below population replacement levels.
This is coupled with an increase in neonatal mortality in recent years.
They’re also troubled by what they see as discrepancies between the statistics reported by the Ministry of Health and the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO, regarding maternal and neonatal mortality rates in Jamaica.
The party says the existence of differing figures from these two sources is concerning and raises questions about their accuracy and reliability.
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