CAPE TOWN, 16 May: India, which has taken proactive steps to reduce neonatal mortality, is likely to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets in this key area by 2030, a top WHO official has said, citing data on the annual rate of reduction for newborn deaths in the country between 2016 and 2021.
“India has taken important steps to improve the quality of care during labour and childbirth, leading to reductions in maternal deaths. This will also bring better outcomes for newborns,” Dr Anshu Banerjee, director of the WHO’s maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health and ageing department, told PTI here.
“If we use the annual rate of reduction for newborn deaths between 2016 and 2021 and apply it to 2022-2030, it is likely that India will be able to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal targets,” Dr Banerjee, who was here last week to attend the International Maternal Newborn Health Conference (IMNHC-2023), said.
India has been proactive in taking action to accelerate neonatal mortality reductions, including strengthening policy and planning for newborn health, Dr Banerjee said.
Banerjee addressed several sessions during the four-day conference which was held from 8-11 May.
The IMNHC-2023 was hosted by the government of South Africa and AlignMNH – a global initiative funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development, and in partnership with the UNFPA, the UNICEF, and the World Bank.
India has an established newborn care programme at both the health facility and community levels. Essential newborn care is given through dedicated newborn care corners in health facilities; newborn stabilisation units have been established in primary health facilities to take care of simple newborn illnesses, and a large network of about 1,000 newborn care units covers nearly every district in the country has been established in hospitals to take care of sick and preterm newborns.
India also has one of the largest “home-based care for newborns” programmes under which six to seven visits are made by frontline health workers (ASHAs) to provide health services and counselling at home after birth.
“In order to bring further gains, it will be important to continue improving the quality of care available to newborns, especially those that are born early, small or sick,” he said.
On what are some best practices that India can emulate from other countries for improving maternal and newborn health, Dr Banerjee said, “India does not have to look far,” adding that “there are success stories within India – for example, the state of Kerala has achieved a maternal mortality rate of 19 per 100,000 live births, followed closely by a few other states.”
India has introduced several IT initiatives to leverage digital platforms to support health service provision for pregnant women and children. Several states are using innovative mobile technology to support health status monitoring and response. (PTI)