Maternal Deaths Decreasing--Or Are They?
Scientific Study Results Pitted Against World Health Organization Sponsored Results
The conclusion reached by the research panel was that over the 28 year span of the study, maternal deaths decreased by more than 35 percent. Maternal deaths are defined as deaths associated with pregnancy and childbirth. In 1980, approximately 500,000 women died in pregnancy or childbirth; in 2008, that number was reduced to 340,000 maternal deaths.
World Health Organization Study
On April 13, 2010 the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, which is hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO), published the results of its own study which reported that improvements in maternal health had "lagged" and that at any where between 350,000 to 500,000 women die in childbirth each year.
Also in this study, the United Nations (UN) reported that $20 billion/year would be needed for the years 2011-2015 to save women and children in developing countries.
Unlike the University of Washington study, the WHO-sponsored study did not reveal from where it compiled data or how study conclusions were determined.
Public Health Dilemma
Why would an organization such as the WHO or the UN want to provide study data that is not only not scientifically creditable but also paints a more negative picture of a public health concern such as maternal health? The answer lies in funding. The worse the numbers are, the more people who are predicted to be affected by a disease or condition--the more money organizations are able to find to fund the public health programs.
For many years, the UN AIDS officials made claims that more than 40 million people worldwide were infected and that the general population worldwide could contract it; funding came in bundles. When the officials admitted they had been inflating the figures for years, the funding for AIDS dropped.
CBSNews reports that: " Experts say public health figures need to be taken with a huge grain of salt, particularly when they come from people who are also soliciting funds for the campaign."
Sources: CBSNews
Cleveland.com
Published by L.L. Woodard
Freelance writer/editor and freelance observer of life. Three decades of nursing experience in long-term care, from development of team care planning to hands-on patient care. View profile
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- WHO hosted study shows 350,000-500,000 women die in pregnancy or childbirth each year.