By Friends of UNFPA | Friends of UNFPA
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, continues to work with partners in Haiti to rebuild the health systems devastated by Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.
In October, UNFPA began relief efforts in the most affected areas of Haiti as a result of Hurricane Matthew. Before this disaster, women and girls already had difficulty in accessing high-quality maternal health services. Haiti suffers from the highest rate of maternal mortality in the Western Hemisphere. Prior to Hurricane Matthew, only 33 percent of the 36 emergency obstetric and neonatal care (EmONC) services were functional, with a total staff of approximately 35 midwives. In Grande Anse, which ultimately became the worst-hit district, only 18 percent of births were assisted by trained medical professionals before this disaster. The maternal mortality rate was already extremely high, with 380 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2015 (WHO). Only about 31 percent of women use modern contraceptive methods, and the total fertility rate (TFR) stands at 3.5 children per woman. In 2012, 64 percent of Haitian women were still giving birth at home without medical assistance. These trends in maternal health continued up until Hurricane Matthew
Since the Hurricane struck, UNFPA has focused its efforts in this crisis by providing reproductive health kits, sending UNFPA-trained midwives for 17,000 pregnant women, 2450 dignity kits, 1000 cooking kits, and 1000 emergency food kits to women and girls. In response, 157 temporary shelters have been set up in the most affected areas. These efforts have been focused on emergency relief in order to prevent maternal health from becoming worse as a result of this disaster.
UNFPA’s long term efforts will be concentrated on preventing the already high rate of maternal deaths from significantly increasing as a result of this crisis. By preventing further increases in maternal mortality, UNFPA hopes that these efforts will continue to decrease maternal mortality over time.
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