International Day of Action for Women's Health - May 28, 2009
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A woman in Eldoret, Kenya, cradles her small child.
Source: Johns Hopkins University |
On May 28, we celebrate women around the globe for their extraordinary contributions in all areas of society – as professionals, as bread-winners, and as caregivers and caretakers.
On May 5, President Obama announced that his administration was committed to spending
$63 billion over six years to bring better health to people around the globe. The President’s 2010 Budget focuses attention on broader global health challenges, including child and maternal health, family planning, and neglected tropical diseases, with cost-effective interventions. It also provides robust funding for HIV/AIDS and adopts an integrated approach to fighting diseases, improving health, and strengthening health systems.
The United States not only supports education for all girls and critical health and family planning services, including HIV/AIDS and reproductive health programs, but also opposes violence and discrimination against women. We will continue to draw inspiration and strength from our partners around the world and work together to protect and improve the lives of every woman and child on this planet. For, in doing so, we will fulfill the great promise of prosperity and progress for all people and for all nations.
Read on to learn about some of our programs.
Maternal Health
This month, USAID marked 20 years of researching, preventing, and treating the major causes of maternal death and disability in high-burden countries.
Every year, more than half a million women die and many more suffer complications from childbirth. Women in sub-Saharan Africa die in childbirth at a rate that is more than 150 times greater than in the United States. USAID maternal health programs have helped to reduce under-5 mortality in almost 30 countries and maternal mortality in 10 countries within a decade.
Strengthening the capacity and number of skilled birth attendants; reducing financial barriers to access care; and improving health information systems have helped to reduce maternal and newborn deaths dramatically.
USAID has sharpened its focus on a set of interventions targeting specific complications of pregnancy and birth that lead to high mortality rates, including excessive bleeding, hypertension, infections, anemia, and prolonged labor. These conditions alone account for two-thirds of maternal deaths in the developing world.
Improvements in maternal health impact other areas of development by increasing child survival, decreasing health care costs, and improving health productivity and household incomes. Program areas include:
- Maternal nutrition
- Birth preparedness and prenatal counseling
- Recognizing and managing complications of pregnancy and unsafe abortion and improving access to care
- Safe, clean delivery; postpartum and newborn care, including counseling on family planning (especially healthy timing and spacing of births); proper rest, nutrition, and hygiene for the mother; awareness of possible signs of complications; and other reproductive health information. The Agency’s approach to maternal and neonatal health follows a continuum of care from pre-pregnancy through the postpartum period.
Fistula Prevention
Since 2004, USAID has also supported a program to repair obstetric fistula, a vaginal injury caused by obstructed labor that results in chronic incontinence. More than 10,000 women in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa have received surgery to repair this devastating injury. Family planning programs, particularly those designed specifically for young women, can help prevent too early births, which are a contributor to fistula.
Family Planning Saves Women's Lives
USAID's approach emphasizes voluntary programs in family planning, including the provision of a wide range of contraceptives, improved quality of care, and client-centered services. USAID's family planning programs are increasingly integrated with other community-based efforts to improve maternal and child health, enhance women's status, and prevent HIV transmission and other infectious diseases. Read more about how Family Planning Saves Lives [PDF, 60KB].
Birth Spacing
Birth spacing of three to five years contributes to better health for women and their children.
Contraceptives and Microbicides Research
USAID has been a leader in biomedical research on a range of high-quality contraceptives and in the development of microbicides to protect women against HIV/AIDS.
Integrating Family Planning and HIV/AIDS Programs
Linking family planning and HIV/AIDS programs in the developing world provides women even greater access to comprehensive reproductive health care that can help them battle the disease and prevent transmission to their children.
Related Reproductive Health Programs Protect Women's Health
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| Source: Johns Hopkins University |
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting
(FGM/C) Abandonment
Stopping the harmful practice of female genital mutilation/cutting is crucial to women's health and their standing in society.
Gender Issues
Reproductive health and HIV/AIDS outcomes can be improved by focusing on the prevention of gender-based violence, addressing the gender implications and vulnerabilities of HIV/AIDS, and increasing male involvement in family planning and reproductive
health decisions.
Postabortion Care (PAC)
PAC programs address women's needs through emergency treatment for complications of spontaneous or induced abortion; family planning counseling and service provision; and sexually transmitted infection (including HIV) evaluation, treatment, and counseling.
Additional Resources, Publications, and Tools
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