Mr Saaka Dramani, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipal Coordinating Director, on Tuesday urged municipal and district assemblies to support the Community Health Base Planning and Services (CHPS) Compound concept to facilitate accessibility to quality health care delivery at the grassroots.
He explained that the concept which had been adopted by some communities in the KEEA municipality had been of immense benefit not only to the ailing public but also pregnant women who otherwise would have travelled long distances for antenatal care.
Mr Dramani made the call during a round table discussion organised by management of Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights (ARHR) an NGO in Cape Coast, under the theme "The State of Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health -Where Is The Southern Zone?".
He underscored the importance of accessible health care delivery to the socio-economic development of the various communities and urged all stakeholders to work towards protection of pregnant women and their babies to complement government's efforts on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and free antenatal care.
Madam Gladys Brew, Safe Mother Care Programme Officer of Ghana Health Service, said maternal and infant mortalities mostly occurred because pregnant women register late at the hospitals for antenatal care due to cultural beliefs which prohibited them from disclosing their pregnancy in the first trimester to people.
She said some causes of maternal deaths were bleeding, infections, anaemia, unsafe abortions, obstructed labour, malaria and HIV/AIDS while infants mostly died of malnutrition, malaria and diarrhoea.
Madam Brew, said some maternal and infant deaths were due to lack of health care centres, poor road network and economic factors in rural areas, and called for the strengthening of the CHPS Compound concept to help address the issue.
She said apart from HIV/AIDS which could only be managed, the rest were preventable and advised pregnant women to report for antenatal care early to prevent avoidable deaths.
Dr Samuel Kwashie, Central Regional Director of Health Service, said the six childhood killer diseases had been reduced to the barest minimum in the country and appealed for support from all stakeholders to further reduce maternal and infant mortalities.
He noted that women and children were very vulnerable and should therefore be given special care to increase their chances of survival.