2. Definition
• Safe motherhood means that no woman and child
should die or be harmed by pregnancy or birth. Safe
motherhood begins with the assurance of basic safety
living as a girl and a woman in society.
• Safe motherhood is defined as a series of initiative,
practices and protocols and service delivery guideline
designed to ensure that women receive high quality
gynecological, family planning, prenatal, delivery and
post-partum care in order to achieve optimal health for
the mother, fetus and infants during pregnancy,
childbirth and post-partum.
3. Note: Safe motherhood is the concept that no
woman or fetus or baby should die or be
harmed by pregnancy or childbirth. This is
made possible by providing timely appropriate
and comprehensive quality obstetric care
during:
Preconception
Pregnancy
Childbirth
Puerperium
4. Components of safe motherhood
• Pre conception care
• Antenatal care
• Ante partum care
• Post-partum care
• Post-abortion care
• Emergency obstetric care/Life saving skills
• Care of the new born.
5. Major causes of maternal mortality
In Uganda 380 per 100,000 women die of pregnancy and
birth related complications which compromise mainly
of;
• Hemorrhage
• Sepsis
• Unsafe abortion
• Eclampsia
• Obstructed labour
• Infection
• Other direct causes
• Indirect causes
6. Predisposing factors to maternal
mortality and morbidity
• Early pregnancy (less than 20 years old)
• Uncontrolled fertility
• Low social economic status of women
• Poverty and lack of empowerment of women
• Lack of access to quality services
• Inadequate referral systems
• Lack of support from spouses
7. Pillars of Safe Motherhood
1. Family planning; to ensure that individuals and couples have the
information and services to plan the timing, number and spacing
of pregnancies and thus the number of unsafe abortion is
controlled
2. Antenatal care; to prevent complications where possible and
ensure that complications of pregnancy are treated appropriately
and very serious conditions referred within the shortest possible
time.
3. Clean/safe delivery and post natal care; to ensure that all birth
attendants have the knowledge, skills and equipment to perform a
clean and safe delivery and provide postpartum care to the
mother and baby, all women should have access to basic
maternity care during delivery.
4. Emergency obstetric care; to ensure that essential care for high
risk pregnancies and complications is made available to all women
and girls who need it. It is estimated that about 15 % of all normal
pregnancies end up with complications therefore the need to
always be prepared for emergency obstetric care.
9. The roles of community in safe
motherhood
The community can give support in several ways to make motherhood
safer:
1. Share the work load so that mother can avoid heavy physical work
2. Encourage pregnant mother to eat a balanced diet and rest than
usual especially during the last three months
3. Encourage mother to take their non-pills or other medication as
provided
4. Help with looking after children so that mother can go for
antenatal care an delivery in the hospital
5. Establish transport readiness for emergency referral and
obstetrical complications
6. Encourage risk mothers to use maternity waiting areas, if advised
to do so during antenatal care
7. Creates inform and motivated community based safe
motherhood groups
10. High Risk Pregnancy
This is the pregnancy that is likely to end up with
complication, death of the mother or baby or
both and the mother must be cared for or
delivered from a well-equipped health unit
under doctor‘s supervision
11. Some High Risk Mothers
1. Young primigravida age 16 below
2. Elderly PG age 35 and above
3. Multigravida of 5 and above
4. Mothers who have had 3 or more
miscarriages
5. Mothers in small statures- (153cm and
below)
6. Limping mothers
12. 7. Mothers with history of pelvic fractures
8. Cephalopelvic disproportion which is compound
9. Multiple pregnancy
10. Mothers with intra uterine fetal death (IUFD)
11. PPH on previous deliveries
12. Mothers with history of retained placenta on previous
delivery
13. Pre-eclampsia, eclampsia and nay mother with a
history of post eclampsia toxemia
14. Mothers with cardiac or renal diseases, essential
hypertension, diabetes, anemic, asthmatic, APH,
Rhesus negative (medical conditions)
15. Mothers with history of instrumental deliveries
16. Mothers with history of mental illness
17. Mothers with history of premature deliveries 18.
Mothers with history of 2 or more still birth
13. The Roles of a Husband in Safe
Motherhood
They are subdivided into:
1 During pregnancy
2 During child birth/labour
3 After delivery
4 In family planning
5 During child rearing
14. During pregnancy
1. To understand & appreciate the discomfort, anxiety & tiredness that
pregnancy may cause in a mother
2. Take over physically tiring tasks like working in the field, lifting heavy
loads, washing and scrubbing floors to avoid any work load on a woman
3. Take care of other children
4. Provide encouragement and emotional supports by trying not to make
demands on her and not criticizing
5. Learn about pregnant related conditions along with the mother to
enable him to help her more effectively and understand what she is
going through especially danger signs in pregnancy
6. Accompany the wife when going to the health center for antenatal care
and health education
7. Understand that good nutrition and medical care during pregnancy are
important and should provide it
8. Provide whatever money necessary to pay for transport fees, or
medication
9. Arrange to have transport ready in case of any emergency during
pregnancy and post natal care.
15. During Labour/Child Birth
1. Give money, clothing, transport, etc.
2. Stay with his wife during labour and delivery
to provide comfort and support
16. After Delivery
1. Adopt to a new person (baby) in his new life and
meets the baby‘s demands and needs especially
breastfeeding
2. Give the mother and the baby understanding,
support, attention and help her with day to day tasks
3. Contribute to having a healthy and happy family by
ensuring that the mother is well fed and that both the
mother and the baby receive medical care
4. Should be aware of danger signs that might
necessitate seeking for medical health
