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- Telangana has taken a wide range of initiatives which have brought down the maternal mortality rate (MMR) in the state.
- Maternal mortality refers to the number of maternal deaths which occur due to pregnancy or as a result of a complication of the same. Maternal mortality rate (MMR) is taken as the number of recorded maternal deaths, for every 1 lakh live births.
- According to the Sample Registration System’s special bulletin on ‘Maternal Mortality in India 2014-16’, the MMR across India was 130 per 1, 00,000 live births. However, in Telangana the MMR dropped from 92 per 1, 00,000 live births in 2011-’13 to 81 per 1, 00,000 live births in 2014-’16. The lowest MMR of 46 was recorded in Kerala, followed by 61 in Maharashtra.
- United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3.1) calls to reduce MMR to less than 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.
- Telangana had launched KCR Kit scheme in 2017. The kit is equipped with 16 essential items for a mother and her new-born. It also has a cash component of Rs 13,000 for the birth of a girl and Rs 12,000 for the birth of a boy.
- Telangana has also been training midwives under the Midwifery Nurse Practitioner Diploma course. It is claimed that Telangana is first State to have certified midwives. Proper training of midwives is expected to reduce number of C-Section deliveries and maternal mortality
- According to World Health Organisation’s ‘Global Strategic Directions for Strengthening Nursing and Midwifery 2016-2020’, midwives play a significant role in maternal health improvements. The contributions include a) increased patient satisfaction, b) decrease in patient morbidity and mortality, c) stabilisation of financial systems through decreased hospital readmissions, length of stay, and other hospital-related conditions, including hospital-acquired infections.