(MENAFN- Pajhwok Afghan News)
FEROZKOH (Pajhwok): Doctors call childbirth at home with untrained attendants risky, but some women in western Ghor province say they have to exercise the option due to harmful traditions, a shortage of female specialists and fewer maternity hospitals.
Historically, most women in this province give birth at home with the assistance of non-professionals local midwives.
Zahra, a 45-year-old from Al-Farooq district, told Pajhwok Afghan News most women in her area gave birth at home due to a lack of female specialist doctors, maternity centres and societal traditions.
However, she views the practice as deeply flawed and recounts a tragic incident involving the death of her daughter-in-law.
She recalls: "Last year, when my daughter-in-law was giving birth to her second child. We brought a midwife, but she started bleeding that wouldn't stop.
“We had to rush her to the provincial hospital in Ghor, but it was too late. She passed away on the way."
Zahra urges the government to raise public awareness about the dangers of home births and to employ female specialist doctors, in addition to establishing well-equipped health centres.
Narma Gul, a 26-year-old woman from Allah Yar district, says she has given birth to her two children with the help of local midwives.
She adds, "My mother-in-law always said, 'We used to give birth at home, and nothing went wrong,' but now hospitals have become a trend. Patients go there, get operated on, and you're also supposed to go to hospital."
Narma Gul says both her children were born at home according to her mother-in-law's wish and she experienced no issues.
However, her third baby, who was born earlier this year, suffered from severe breathing difficulties.
"My third baby had serious difficulty breathing and passed away after a few hours. After that, I swore the next time I give birth, I will go to hospital," she commented.
Doctors, however, consider home births to be hazardous and emphasise on families to take their daughters-in-law to health centres.
Sahar Rahimi, a gynaecologist at the Ghor Provincial Hospital, told Pajhwok, "Home births may provide comfort and peace of mind for the woman in the presence of family members and reduce costs, but for families unaware of the risks, it could endanger the life of the mother and child."
She warned home births could lead to issues like breathing problems or suffocation of the newborn and severe maternal hemorrhage.
Due to a lack of hygiene, she explains, home births can cause the mother and child serious infections. She wants families to take women to health centres during childbirth.
On the other hand, officials at the Public Health Department say in order to provide better healthcare services to pregnant women in remote areas, they have utilised the services of local volunteers.
On the other hand, Director of Public Health Dr Abdul Sattar Muqaddam and rejects the idea of non-professional births says: "Our efforts are focused on hiring professional staff in all remote areas and training them so they can assist mothers during childbirth and provide proper care for mothers and babies."
He added in cooperation with health organisations and the Ministry of Public Health, several clinics had been established in remote areas in the past two years.
Improved health services had led to a significant reduction in maternal and child mortality rates in recent years, he claimed.
sa/mud
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