Efforts at reducing neonatal mortality highlighted

The Director Policy Planning and Monitoring Services at the Ghana Health Services, Dr Erasmus Agongo, says though Ghana could boast of the best systems for effective primary health care delivery to addressing critical health problems, it was necessary  to go the extra mile to strengthen and reinforce those systems. For him, the quest to the attainment  of  the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 (MDGs) will be a mirage, if coordinated efforts are not intensified to improve the health and survival of newborns. He however advised the Ghana Health Service to employ a community based approach supported by effective facility level strategies in dealing with child healthcare and survival. Dr Agongo, was speaking at this year’s half review meeting on essential newborn care at Bolgatanga. The meeting organized by the Upper East Regional Health Directorate discussed the progress made in the implementation of new born care interventions in the northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions. Participants drawn from the three northern regions used the platform to share knowledge and experiences on the implementation of newborn care activities.  Also present were some development partners in health including the UNICEF and the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).  Dr Agongo said in order to ensure a significant reduction in neonatal morbidity and mortality, it was crucial to tackle it at the community level considering the limited human and logistical constraints in most deprived health facilities.  He observed that basic healthcare should be people centered and until enough resources are committed to support the various community health professionals and facilities, children will continue to die soon after birth. Dr Adongo, however commended the development partners for the level of commitment attached to newborn care interventions and appealed to the health sector of the region to complement their effort by way of scaling up their advocacy efforts. The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr John Koku Awoonor-Williams, for his part, challenged health professionals to consolidate the gains made over the period and renew their commitment towards addressing the common causes of new born deaths.  He announced that about 40 percent of under five and 60 percent of infant mortality occur within the first month of birth. He therefore proposed an integrated strategy and the adoption of simple and cost effective interventions to accelerate the achievements of the MDGs by 2015.    

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