Module 6: Unit 1

• Maternal, infant and child health


  Important indicators of the effectiveness of disease prevention and health promotion services in a community
• Improved maternal and child health is the key to the ultimate objective of lifelong health in any society
• The health of a nation can best be judged by the health of its youngest members—the infants (age <1 y/o)
• Mother and child


  Considered as a single entity because they are so closely linked that each has the capacity to influence the other
• Outcome of pregnancy


  • Dependent on the physical, physiological, mental and nutritional state of the mother
• Interventions during pregnancy

  • Immunizations
  • Nutrient Supplementation
  • Screening tests to detect diseases
• During childbirth, both mother and child are at risk for complications which can endanger their lives
• After birth, the care of the mother is inseparable from newborn care
• Challenges in addressing maternal and child health

  • Lack of universalization of services
  • Rural urban differential
  • Poor status of women in society
  • Lack of political will and acceptance of the issue as a social priority
• 2 dimensions in the provision of packages of essential primary-health-care services

  • Time
  • Place
• Maternal health


  The health of women in the childbearing years, including those in the pre-pregnancy period, those who are pregnant, and those who are caring for young children
• Maternal health care

  • Antenatal care
  • Intra-natal care
  • Postnatal care
• Quality intra-natal care is critical to achieve the aim of a healthy mother and a healthy baby at the end of a pregnancy
• Maternal Health (RA 10354)


  The health of a woman of reproductive age including, but not limited to, during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum period
• Maternal Mortality Ratio


  Measures the risk associated with each pregnancy, calculated as the number of maternal deaths during a given year per 100,000 live births during the same period
• Maternal Mortality Rate


  Measures the obstetric risk and the frequency with which women are exposed to this risk, calculated as the number of maternal deaths in a given period per 100,000 women of reproductive age (usually 15- 49 years)
• Lifetime Risk of Maternal Death


  Takes into account the probability of becoming pregnant and the probability of dying as a result of the pregnancy cumulated across a woman's reproductive years, estimated by multiplying the maternal mortality rate by the length of the reproductive period (around 35 years)
• 5 leading causes of maternal deaths

  • Hemorrhage
  • Embolism
  • Pregnancy-induced hypertension
  • Sepsis/infection
  • Anesthesia complications
• Common risks to maternal health

  • Eclampsia and Pre-Eclampsia
  • Gestational Diabetes
  • Post-partum Hemorrhage
  • Post-partum Depression
  • Maternal Sepsis
• Opportunities to reduce maternal and infant mortality

  • Before Conception
  • During Pregnancy
  • During Post-partum Period
• Prenatal health care


  The medical care provided to a pregnant woman from the time of conception until the birth process occurs, one of the fundamentals of safe motherhood program
• 3 components of pre-natal health care

  • Risk assessment
  • Treatment for medical conditions
  • Risk reduction as well as education
• Maternal health program in the Philippines

  • Antenatal Registration
  • Tetanus Toxoid Immunization
  • Micronutrient Supplementation
  • Treatment of Disease and Other Chronic Conditions
  • Clean and Safe Delivery
  • Support to Breastfeeding
  • Family Planning Counseling
• Reproductive Health (RA 10354)


  The state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes
• Improves maternal health


  • Reduces post-partum bleeding
  • Allows for an earlier return to pre-pregnancy weight
  • Reduces the risk of osteoporosis
• Family Planning Counseling


  1. Birth spacing of three to five years interval

  2. Help completely recover the health of a mother from previous pregnancy and childbirth
• RA 10354


  Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012
• Reproductive Health


  The state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes
• Reproductive Health


  • Implies that people are able to have a responsible, safe, consensual and satisfying sex life
  • Capability to reproduce and the freedom to decide if, when, and how often to do so
  • Implies that women and men attain equal relationships in matters related to sexual relations and reproduction
• Issues concerning Reproductive Health

  • Abortion
  • Family Planning
• Abortion


  The termination of pregnancy, either from medical surgery or ingestion of drugs that will kill the fetus
• Reasons for Abortion


  • Unmet fertility needs
  • Poor family planning
  • Teenage pregnancies
• In the Philippine setting, abortion is illegal but common
• The socioeconomic status of a mother plays a role in the abortion procedure
• Family Planning


  Having the desired number of children and when you want to have them by using safe and effective modern methods
• Proper birth spacing


  • 3-5 years apart
  • Best for the health of the mother, her child and the family
• Benefits of proper birth spacing

  • Enough recovery for the mother
  • Decrease financial burden
• RA 10354


  • Enables couples and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children and to have the information and means to do so
  • Enables couples to have access to a full range of safe, affordable, effective, non-abortifacient modern natural and artificial methods of planning pregnancy
• National Family Planning Program

  1. Launched by the DOH to address the unmet needs of family planning

  2. Aims to increase Modern Contraceptive Prevalence rate (mCPR) among all women from 24.9% in 2017 to 30% by 2022 and reduce the unmet need for modern family planning from 10.8% in 2017 to 8% by 2022
• Infancy


  • The first year of life
  • Marked by the greatest threat to survival
  • A good measure of the progress in the fields of socio-economic, medical and healthcare development in a country