Maternal Mortality Ratio and Universal Access to Reproductive Health Care in the State of Qatar between 1990 and 2012: A PEARL Study Analysis

Authors

  • Sajjad Ur Rahman NICU Women’s Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation
  • Emirah Latiph Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Nuha Nimeri NICU Women’s Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation
  • Halima Al-Tamimi Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Badereldeen Ahmad Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Najat Mohsin Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Faten Al Tahir Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Naseera Aboobacker Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Lamman Naji Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Shamsa Abdul Rahman Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Shamsa Abdul Rahman Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Hussain Shrara Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Mariam Al Sakka Department of Obstetrics Women’s and Al Khor Hospitals HMC
  • Walid El Ansari Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Gloucestershire Gloucester
  • Abdulbari Bener Department of Statistics Hamad Medical Corporation

Keywords:

Maternal mortality, Millennium development goals, Reproductive health, Neonatal perinatal registry, Qatar

Abstract

Study Aim: The Millennium Development Goal (MDG)- 5 mandates a three quarters reduction in Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) and provision of universal access to reproductive health by 2015. Our study aims to analyze Qatar’s performance in achieving MDG 5 between 1990 and 2012.

Study Design: A National Prospective cohort-study

Data Source: Qatar Perinatal Registry (Q-Peri-Reg) for 2011 and 2012 data

Methods: National data on total deliveries, total births (live and stillbirths) and maternal mortality (during pregnancy to day 42 post-delivery) was collected from all public and private maternity units in Qatar (1st January 2011- December, 31st 2012) and compared with historical maternal mortality data (1990-2010) ascertained from the database of maternity and neonatal units of Women’s Hospital, annual reports of Hamad Medical Corporation and international reports. For inter country comparison, country data was extracted from World Health Statistics 2011(WHO).

Results: The country wide live births were 20583 during 2011 and 22,225 during 2012 with two maternal deaths duringeach year giving an MMR of 9.85/100,000 and 8.99/100,000 live births respectively which was more than three quarters decline from an MMR of 49/100,000 in 1990. During 2011, 74.22% deliveries were normal vaginal (n 15076) and 25.78% (n 5238) by Caesarean section. 99.45 % of deliveries were attended by a trained birth attendant in a maternity facility while 0.55 % (n = 114) took place out of hospital. 100% of mothers had made at least one antenatal visit and 100% of live births were examined by a pediatrician and entered in national birth register. Qatar’s 2011 and 2012 MMR is significantly lower than the current global MMR of 260/100,000 and Eastern Mediterranean Region MMR of 320/100,000.

Conclusion: Qatar has achieved its target MDG 5 well before 2015. Qatar’s 2011 and 2012 MMR is comparable to most high income countries. Qatar’s reproductive health system, with its universal access for all, provides a unique model to study the correlates and associations of maternal survival which can form the basis of global health systems improvement strategies.

Downloads

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 2 (2016)

Section

Articles

License

Policy for Journals/Articles with Open Access

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
    1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

  1. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post links to their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work

Policy for Journals / Manuscript with Paid Access

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
    1. Publisher retain copyright .

  1. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post links to their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work .