Although Kenya is doing well on reducing maternal mortality rates compared to other countries, it still witnesses a large number of avoidable deaths during delivery.

Whereas the global average is 550 deaths of mothers in every 100,000 live births, the rate drops to 414 in Kenya, meaning many positive measures have been put in place to make motherhood safer.  However, anecdotal evidence about the cause of deaths of many women during delivery still paint a picture that implies if hospitals improved the quality of care they give mothers during delivery, the rate can be reduced even further.

For instance, there are far too many cases of negligence or insufficient supply of critical health care facilities, such as blood for transfusion in emergencies, that expose mothers to death risk during delivery. These are challenges that can be addressed by improving supervision and accountability in hospitals and ensuring critical supplies that mothers need for delivery are available and affordable.

Motherhood ought, ideally, to be a celebration. The knowledge about how to make mothers safe from risk during delivery is widely available but there are still gaps in dissemination and application of this knowledge. It would be edifying to see more counties invest in primary health care so that they can monitor pregnant women, teach them about safe motherhood and invest in mobile clinics or other forms of easily available care so that they can further bring down the maternal death statistics. It should be remembered that every mother who dies at childbirth is not just a statistic; she is the mother of other children, a lover, a caregiver, a community leader or breadwinner. As such, society should invest more to make giving birth safe, not just for the sake of the mother and their newborn baby, but for the wellbeing of the larger society.

Counties such as Murang’a has developed a financial incentive to help new mothers start small businesses, should be celebrated. The commitment made by Health Cabinet Secretary Nakhumicha Wafula that the government will improve health services to make them more responsive to mothers and their family ought to be welcomed. However, it would be better to see her breath life into that pledge sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile, we hope Mothers’ Day was a happy occasion for all mothers, and the fathers who make the aspiration of motherhood come true for millions of women.