Durban - According to the World Health Organisation and UNICEF, South Africa is one of 11 countries whose under-five mortality is climbing. One out of every three of these deaths is a newborn.
Solutions and dialogue geared towards lowering these alarming figures will top the agenda at the 7th International Conference for Neonatal Nurses which is being held in Africa for the first time.
MEC for health in KwaZulu-Natal Sibongiseni Dhlomo addressed hundreds of delegates from 17 countries at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Convention Centre on Sunday.
"As government we are not expected to join the chorus of questions on why do mothers and newborns die but to provide answers," Dhlomo said.
The MEC said his department had managed to find some answers but was looking forward to receiving first hand information on the outcomes of the conference.
They include highlighting neonatal care in the region, promoting neonatal nursing as a specialty and encouraging the formation of national neonatal nursing associations and membership.
While the department indentified pressing issues, more work still needs to be done in addressing this serious problem that affects South Africa.
The department's investigations found that in KwaZulu-Natal, 17.7 percent of women do not attend antenatal classes, 25.7 percent undergo unsafe abortions and there is a delay in seeking medical help.
There was also a problem with health worker in terms of substandard management and problems with diagnosis.
The province also faces administrative problems - the lack of blood for transfusion, trained staff, ICU facilities and transport.
The MEC said community leaders must identify all pregnant women. They must be offered information and support by society, family and government departments. This will impact directly on the increase in the number of pregnant women who attend antenatal clinics.
"Involve civic society to strengthen postnatal care to curtail the number of women who die due to pregnancy related sepsis following viable pregnancy and women should plan their pregnancies and avoid unwanted pregnancies," said Dhlomo.
The MEC added: "We need to find ways of making our communities to understand that the primary objective of perinatal care is to deliver a healthy baby to a healthy mother".
Government is also concerned that 70 percent of neonatal deaths come about as a result of prematurity and birth asphyxia as well as through infections and congenital malformations.
In KwaZulu-Natal, the health department will establish neonatal experiential learning sites and outreach programme in a cluster of districts to develop and support neonatal services in all hospitals under its jurisdiction, to address the problem.
Delegates so far who made addresses, are hoping that like HIV and AIDS and Tuberculosis, neonatal issues start to get more priority on different global agendas.
