(Pregnant Woman. Photo Credit: Nation News)
Health experts have urged pregnant women to have their babies in hospitals rather than at home, saying it’s much safer for both mother and child.
The experts made their point during a media discussion on maternal health held in Yola, Adamawa State.
The event was organized by the state government and the United Nations Children’s Fund.
They expressed worry that mothers and newborns are dying from problems that could easily be prevented if they gave birth in proper healthcare settings.
Experts explained that having babies at home is risky because the people helping with the delivery often don’t have the right skills or equipment to handle emergencies.
Serious bleeding after birth, pieces of the placenta left inside, infections in the umbilical cord and labour that gets stuck are just some of the life-threatening complications that can happen.
Without proper medical care, these situations can quickly become deadly.
The head of the Adamawa State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr Suleiman Bashir, said hospital births are not just safer but also very affordable or even free.
He urged people to stop having home births, noting that cost is no longer a real barrier since many maternal services are heavily discounted or completely free.
Health experts from the United Nations Children’s Fund reinforced the same message, stressing that qualified doctors and nurses should deliver babies.
One maternal health specialist said the main thing to discourage is home delivery.
She also advised that pregnant women should start visiting health centres as soon as they know they’re pregnant, and should see a doctor at least eight times during pregnancy for check-ups.
