HELP SPREAD WORD ON PRE-NATAL CARE: NGO
NGO urges marginalized women to avail themselves of pre-natal services to avoid complications during birth
Judith Abella, 23, witnessed her sister die in childbirth in a public hospital. Her sister wasn’t aware of pre-natal care services that she should have availed herself of.
Abella said she and her sibling supported themselves by scavenging in garbage heaps for something to sell or eat.
Abella was one of the speakers in a press conference organized by the Glory Reborn organization called “What Women Can,” a campaign to end maternal mortality.
Deputy House Speaker Pia Cayetano was one of the guests who highlighted the importance of the Reproductive Health Law for Filipino families to plan pregnancies.
“One of the biggest problems that we have in making women have access to reproductive health care is information. So by just sharing or talking about it all the time, about how many women are deprived of basic maternal health care like pre-natal checkups, we may be able to reach
When I got pregnant, I was also frightened. Will I also die?
JUDITH ABELLA, who saw her sister die giving birth
many people who can help,” said Cayetano, a former senator.
Abella, who was under the care of the non-governmental organization Glory Reborn, thanked the clinic for the healthy delivery of her two children.
“We’re a happy family now. I am finishing my studies in college,” she said.
Abella admitted that she got scared after she saw her sister die in childbirth.
“When I got pregnant, I was also frightened. Would I also die? Now, Glory Reborn takes care of me and my family, especially my children,” she said.
Glory Reborn is a non-profit maternity clinic that has been fighting against maternal mortality since 2003.
The clinic provides quality health care to marginalized mothers and babies in Cebu.
“Our goal is for marginalized moms to be able to give birth in a safe and comfortable environment,” Cayetano said.
Based on the World Health Organization’s statistics for 2015, 830 women die from pregnancy or childbirth-related causes every day.
“Women die, husbands are left to take care of their children without their mother. There are also complications among pregnant women who have HIV, as well as teen pregnancies,” she said.
Cayetano reiterated that the reproductive health law must continue to be implemented in the communities to see an impact in the long run.
She also expressed her support for bills that empower women and children’s rights but said that politics is not a priority.
She said that she wanted to focus on laws for abused women and children.