FEAR OF WITCHCRAFT A CAUSE OF MATERNAL DEATHS - MINISTRY

MBABANE – The Ministry of Health says one of the causes of maternal mortality is fear of witchcraft among some families.

Maternal mortality refers to the death of females from causes related to pregnancy. Nomathemba Ginindza, the Senior Midwife in Manzini and Xoilsile Tekhaya Dlamini, who is the Manzini Health Promotion Officer, yesterday unpacked three delays that contributed to the death of pregnant women while giving birth or death of the child. They were speaking on the national radio during a health programme. The three delays include; failure of the pregnant woman to take the decision to go and see a doctor if not feeling well, transportation and having difficulties in getting quick help upon arrival at the health facilities, due to various circumstance.

According to Ginindza, culture, at some point contributes to maternal fertility. She said some pregnant women felt uneasy to announce their early stages of pregnancies because they feared that they would experience miscarriage. “She may assume that someone doesn’t love her and, therefore, might do something evil against her unborn baby. Culturally, it is problematic for any woman to come out and say I am pregnant,” said Ginindza. She said because of that, some pregnant women ended up waiting a few months to confirm whether they were experiencing complications  or not, before telling others.

Important

Meanwhile, Dlamini said families contributed to maternal mortality, adding that it was important for families to give full support to pregnant women.
“Before a woman decides to conceive, it is important for her to go to hospital for check-up. Family members must fully support her while undergoing that process. If she has certain sicknesses, we encourage her relatives to be always there for her,” said Dlamini. According to Dlamini, there were consequences of not giving full support to pregnant women. She said it was then possible to lose the mother or child or even both.

She further stated that women’s lifestyles could also contribute to them dying while giving birth or losing the child. She then highlighted that smoking and drinking alcohol was not good for any pregnant woman. Ginindza added that transport was another contributing factor to pregnant women losing their lives or that of their unborn babies. This is because some homesteads are in remote areas, where there is no easy access to transport. She then pleaded with various ministries to come together in curbing maternal death rate.

Dying

“For example, in some areas, once you miss the 6am bus, you are expected to wait for the afternoon one. Some pregnant women do not reach hospital on time, resulting to them dying,” clarified Ginindza. The senior midwife also indicated that delay by health workers in attending to emergency cases, due to shortage of equipment contributed to the deaths. She then pointed out that every healthcare worker must play a role in ensuring that no life is lost during birth. She then pleaded with the ministry to also make sure that the necessary equipment was made available. She said lack of appropriate medication for pregnant women could result to loss of life.

One Billion Rising Director, Colani Hlatjwako said women were living in a society with a lot of experience. She said it was in that regard that some pregnant women ended up believing that they were victims of witchcraft. “Besides the rituals, women do not report their early pregnancies due to the pressure they received from their in-laws. They are expected to give birth the day they become official wives in their families,” said Hlatjwako.

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