Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines John Holmes will lead today the inauguration of the first of four maternity plus clinics under the ‘Innovations in Reducing Maternal Mortality in the Philippines’ project funded by the Global Affairs Canada and the Canadian NGO Inter Pares.
Three other clinics are set to open later this year in Navotas; Towerville, Bulacan; and Quinapondan, Eastern Samar —areas where there are concentration of poor women to whom the project’s offering of “safe, responsive and respectful maternity plus care” services is dedicated.
The project will also tap PhilHealth benefits for maternity and newborn care and family planning for financial support.
The maternity plus clinic offers skilled birth attendance by trained nurses and midwives; referral and transport to hospitals for emergency obstetric and newborn care; and family planning services that include the full range of methods available.
These are the triad of services that are known to rapidly reduce maternal and infant mortality.
These services are critical in the Philippines where maternal deaths continue to be high with 221 deaths per 100,000 live births based on the 2011 Family Health Survey.
The women who have the highest risk of dying from the complications of pregnancy and childbirth are those without access to maternity plus services.
These include poor women whether in urban or rural areas, women with little education, adolescent girls, women belonging to ethnic groups, and women with mental health problems and other disability.
The inauguration program will start at 8 a.m. via a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Likhaan Maternity Plus clinic on Zaragosa St, Barangay 13, Tondo and will be followed by a program-exhibit at the Barangay 13 covered court.
Joining Holmes at the inauguration program are former Health secretaries Esperanza Cabral and Janette Garin, Rita Morbia and David Bruer of Inter Pares, Jordan Wiley of Medecins Sans Frontieres, Fabella Memorial Hospital Director Esmeraldo Ilem, DOH Director Joyce Ducusin, Barangay 13 Chairman Mario Dantes Macapagal and several other local officials.