The Pregnancy School concept is an innovative way of improving communication between the health sector, pregnant women and families with involvement of relevant stakeholders to offer a complete package of services during antenatal period.

The 86- page book, authored by Dr Linda Van-Otoo, the Greater Accra Regional Director of Health Service gives clear guidelines on how to run a pregnancy school aside the regular antenatal care given to pregnant women to ensure the survival of both mother and child after delivery.

This is a comprehensive pregnancy book for student nurses, health training institutions and health workers who provide service to pregnant women, families and newborns to complement current antenatal services.

Mrs Amissah-Arthur congratulated the author for coming with the idea to safe guard the lives of expectant mothers and reduce mortality and morbidity in the country. She said pregnancy was an enjoyable stage because one was going to give birth to another human being hence the book had come at an opportune time to manage and allow for early detection of pregnancy complications.

Mrs Van-Otoo said pregnancy carry a hidden treasure and for that reason all must do everything possible to ensure that mothers and children survive after delivery. She said the aim was to enable health centres in the remote areas, provide relevant healthcare to the people and promote maternal infant survival excellence for all expectant mothers anywhere they find themselves.

She said though Ghana had adopted many interventions to improve delivery systems, the country still recorded unacceptably high numbers of maternal and new born death illness hence the school was necessary because it gave the pregnant deep insight of what they needed to know and expect before delivery.

 “This is what antenatal clinic failed to do that led to the rise in maternal mortality.”

Dr Kennedy Brightson, Medical Superintendent Ghana Health Service said the Pregnancy School the panacea of maternal mortality had come to stay, had come to stay because it had made tremendous impact in communities as far as health delivery was concerned.

He said through a four stage process pregnant women would be schooled to clear the myth associated with delivery that makes them stay away from hospitals. “This would demystify the fear instill in them for better treatment,” he stated.