By Lillian Okenwa
24-year-old Oluomachi Nwojo, a final year student of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia, entered the hall of fame when she gave birth to a set of quintuplets at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia.
Ms. Nwojo, who gave birth to two boys and three girls on Monday, 5 October 2022 through Caesarean Section (CS) described it as a wonderful experience.
“This is my first delivery and I am grateful to God for making me a partaker of this wonderful blessing. I believe God knows the best for my children; I am feeling fine and gradually recuperating from the birth of my babies. I am calling on the government and good-spirited individuals to help me in training the babies because I cannot carry the burden alone.”
Days before, a team of doctors at the Maryam Abacha Women and Children Hospital Damaturu, in Yobe State, North-East Nigeria took delivery of two sets of triplets from different mothers also via CS. The two pregnant mothers who were brought to the hospital from different locations had undergone five weeks of intensive care before the successful procedures.
But these are exceptional cases as five of 1000 Nigerian women die while delivering their babies. Latest statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed that Nigeria accounts for over 34 percent of global maternal deaths while the lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, or after an abortion for a Nigerian woman is one in 22, compared to one in 4900 in developed countries
Sadly, Nigeria has made little effort in saving the lives of pregnant women and babies from preventable deaths during delivery.
“The cases of maternal mortality can be attributed to not being able to reach the hospital. If you add those ones who reached the hospital and are not attended to because of deposit, they are going to be between 30 to 40 percent. Nigeria has about 512 maternal mortalities per 100,000 births now. That’s about the worst in the world said Health Minister, Osagie Ehinare who ThisDay Newspaper described as making “the usual lamentation about our plight to which officials of the current administration have become renowned.”
Maternal and infant mortality rates are even more significant in the Northern states than in other parts. The alarming rate is exemplified by the northeastern region’s high maternal death rate, three times higher than the national average. The inability to obtain high-quality health care in most Nigerian health facilities contributes significantly to this high maternal mortality rate.
The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib once disclosed that nearly 2,300 children under five die daily and about 145 women die day-to-day in Nigeria from pregnancy and childbirth-related matters. He likened the 145 daily maternal deaths to having a fully loaded Boeing 737-300 airplane, with 145 women crashing every single day in Nigeria, killing everyone on board.
“Every day in Nigeria, approximately 145 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, this is equivalent to having 1 Boeing 737-300 series airplane, fully loaded with 145 women crashing every single day in Nigeria, killing everyone on board.
“Every day in Nigeria, approximately 2,300 children under five years die mainly from preventable causes. Similarly, this is equivalent to having 15 Boeing 737-300 series airplanes fully loaded with 145 children under five years old, crashing every single day in Nigeria and killing all the children on board. One out of every eight Nigerian children dies before having a chance to celebrate his or her 5th birthday.”
Over the years, there has been a consistent decline in the Nigerian health sector. Rather than ameliorate the situation, government officials —governors, legislators, ministers, and others travel abroad where they can receive the best treatment. Ordinary Nigerians are left to their fate.
Worse still, is the exodus of health professionals to overseas countries. Better pay and working conditions have been cited as the main reason for the flight of Nigerian doctors, nurses, and paramedics.
Remigius N. Nwabueze in his book “The Legal Protection and Enforcement of Health Rights in Nigeria”, made the following observation: “Nigeria’s Revised National Health Policy recognizes that ‘health and access to quality and affordable health care is a human right.’ Thus, the Nigerian Constitution provides for a mix of rights to health and health care services, although such rights as articulated are not justiciable.”
