The world is facing a shortage of 900,000 midwives, and Covid-19 is making it worse May 07, 2021, 10:16 AM
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A midwife cares for a baby that was delivered in her home in Harare, several hours earlier on January 15, 2021.
Tafadzwa Ufumeli/Getty Images
The Covid-19 crisis has made the problem worse as midwives leave the profession due to overwork and lack of resources, per the report.
The world is facing a shortage of roughly 900,000 midwives, according to a new report, even as interest in home births has been on the rise during the pandemic.
There are about 1.9 million midwives globally, about two-thirds of what is needed, according to the report, which was published this month by the United Nations Population Fund, the World Health Organisation, the International Confederation of Midwives, and partners.
United Nations
Fully investing in midwives by 2035 would avert roughly two-thirds of maternal, newborn deaths and stillbirths, saving 4.3 million lives per year.
Millions of lives of women and newborns are lost, and millions more experience ill health or injury, because the needs of pregnant women and skills of midwives are not recognized or prioritized.
The world is currently facing a shortage of 900,000 midwives, which represents a third of the required global midwifery workforce. The COVID-19 crisis has only exacerbated these problems, with the health needs of women and newborns being overshadowed, midwifery services being disrupted and midwives being deployed to other health services.
Director-General s opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 – 7 May 2021
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Wednesday’s announcement by the United States of America that it will support a temporary waiver of intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines is a significant statement of solidarity and support for vaccine equity. We are in an unprecedented crisis that requires unprecedented action. Cases are at a record high, almost 100 thousand people are dying globally each week, and we have a chronic vaccine crisis.
This afternoon, WHO gave Emergency Use Listing to Sinopharm Beijing’s COVID-19 vaccine, making it the sixth vaccine to receive WHO validation for safety, efficacy and quality. The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, or SAGE, has also reviewed the available data, and recommends the vaccine for adults 18 years and older, with a two-dose schedule.
In the Hospital Close-up Shot of Professional Midwives work Assisted by Obstetricians. In Modern Delivery Woman Pushes to Give Birth
The world is currently being plaque by a shortage of midwives. According to a new United Nations report, the shortage is around 900,000.
The rampaging COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated the situation with many midwives being redeployed to help plug vital gaps in other health services.
The 2021 State of the World’s Midwifery report by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), World Health Organisation (WHO), and the International Confederation of Midwives, said that fully resourcing midwife-delivered care by 2035 will avert roughly two-thirds of maternal, newborn deaths and stillbirths, saving 4.3 million lives per year.
BNA praises midwives’ ‘resilience’ in the time of COVID
Article by May 7, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in “enormous challenges” for Barbadian midwives, President of the Barbados Nurses Association (BNA) Valarie Francis-Miller has said.
But she praised midwives for their continued “resilience” in provide life-saving services to pregnant women and ensuring healthy outcomes for mothers and babies amid the raging viral outbreak.
She made the comments at the BNA’s Midwives Group’s virtual seminar on midwifery’s challenges during COVID-19 as Barbados joined the rest of the world on Wednesday to observe
International Day of the Midwife.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has put the global spotlight on midwives and nurses, and the critical role we play. The pandemic has affected all areas of perinatal care, which has caused midwives to face enormous challenges,” Francis-Miller stated.