Did you know that complications from prematurity are the largest killer of children under 5? Saving Lives at Birth recognized World Prematurity Day (November 17) with the release of a video featuring Florence Mwenifumbo, a neonatal nurse in Malawi, and Jocelyn Brown, an MBA student at the University of California, Berkeley, whose efforts are saving the lives of small and sick newborns. Through the support of Saving Lives at Birth, both women champion the use of the continuous positive airway pressure machine, better known as CPAP, which can provide premature babies with the air pressure needed to support their breathing.

 

An op-ed from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) (Doctors Without Borders) highlights the importance of outreach and medical supervision in safe deliveries, particularly in low-resource settings.

Pakistan currently has the highest rate of newborn mortality in the world, with one in every 22 babies dying during the first month of life. Stillborn births are also a major issue in Pakistan, compounding the challenge further. Primary causes of newborn mortality in the country include premature birth, infections and complications during pregnancy and labor often exacerbated by social and cultural practices and lack of access to quality care throughout the region ---  particularly for women. "It is still common for women in Pakistan to deliver their babies at home ---  in poor conditions of hygiene and without the assistance of health professionals," says Dr. Khadija, a pediatrician in the neonatal care unit of Peshawar Women's Hospital. "There are often no drugs, no clean water and no electricity."

Since the 2011 opening of a MSF hospital in Peshawar ---  the capital of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ---  the organization has facilitated over 25,000 live births, entirely free of charge. In addition, new mothers at Peshawar Women's Hospital are advised on the importance of vaccination, postnatal care, and skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth and breastfeeding.

 

 

The Global Financing Facility (GFF) ---  in Support of Every Woman Every Child ---  has received $1 billion in contributions from a number of world leaders intended to assist the GFF's expansion into as many as 50 countries. Donors include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Burkina Faso, Canada, Côte d'Ivoire the European Commission, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Laerdal Global Health, the Netherlands, Norway, Qatar and the United Kingdom.

As a catalyst for health financing, the GFF works to transform how countries invest in women, children and adolescents, enabling them to achieve the Sustainable Develop goals and prioritizing the importance of health and nutrition in eradicating preventable deaths. "Today there is great hope that the world's poorest countries can build healthy, vibrant futures where no woman, child or youth is left behind," says Erna Solberg, Prime Minister of Norway and Co-Chair of the Sustainable Development Goals Advocates. "The GFF partnership is effective and efficient ---  working with countries to develop the capacity to build and sustain the health systems their women and children need to survive and thrive."