‘Support for community midwives will save lives of Pakistani mothers’

Thousands of women and newborns in Pakistan die each year as a result of preventable complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Most of these deaths can be averted if there were enough properly trained, competent and supported midwives working in the communities and in a functional health system. 

‘International Midwives Day’ is celebrated every year around the year as well as in Pakistan to commemorate and increase the awareness about the contribution of midwives towards patients’ welfare. 

Efforts are made to highlight the manner in which midwives’ continue to wide contribute towards the reduction of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality, especially in rural areas of Pakistan, by providing skilled care to women during the entire maternity cycle.

The Maternal and Child Health Integrated Program (MCHIP), funded by USAID, celebrates the event with a passion to support the government of Sindh and its Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (MNCH) programme in order to strengthen the role of community midwives. 

MCHIP is working closely with the Sindh Health Department to develop sustainable action plans to improve quality of clinical care services through enhancing clinical knowledge and skills of community midwives. 

The project is contributing to the ultimate goal of reducing preventable maternal and newborn deaths. Focus on improving the performance of community midwives by providing technical and business skills training, infrastructure improvement, and provisioning of equipment and supplies is the highlighted part of the project.  

MCHIP Programme Officer Syfoor Bibi said, “For me, International Midwifery Day has so much importance because I believe that skilled and well supported midwives are the frontline soldiers in protecting mothers from avoidable deaths due to complications of pregnancy and childbirth.”

Similarly, Amina Marjat, a Community Midwife in Tando Allahyar, Sindh, said, “Our work is challenging. My clinic was not well equipped before but since I received the business skills training from MCHIP, I learned how I can successfully run my clinic as a profitable business. Thankfully, there is an organisation which is helping CMWs to serve professionally and run their clinics successfully.”