Rwanda on Friday, September 17 joined the rest of the world to mark the international world day of patient safety, whose theme this year is ‘Safe maternal and newborn care’. Dr Félix Sayinzoga, the Division Manager of Maternal health at Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) said his department has a mandate of coordinating all health interventions and initiatives related to maternal and child health in Rwanda. This includes Community Health Worker activities, reproductive health, and gender-based violence. According to the World health organization, approximately 810 women die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, in addition, around 6700 newborns die every day, amounting to 47 per cent of all under-5 deaths. Moreover, there are about 2 million stillborn babies every year, with over 40 per cent occurring during labour. Considering the significant burden of risks and harm women and newborns are exposed to due to unsafe care, compounded by the disruption of essential health services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the campaign is even more important this year. However, in Rwanda, 99 percent of pregnant women get at least one visit by a health care provider during pregnancy and 93 per cent of deliveries are performed at a health facility. Maternal mortality dropped from 1071 per 100,000 women in 1992 to 203 in 2020, as per International Conference on Population and Development commitments, the number has to be 70 by 2030 Fortunately, the majority of stillbirths, maternal and newborn deaths are avoidable through the provision of safe and quality care by skilled health professionals working in supportive environments. This can only be achieved through the engagement of all stakeholders and the adoption of comprehensive health systems and community-based approaches. World Patient Safety Day was established in 2019 to enhance global understanding of patient safety, increase public engagement in the safety of health care and promote global actions to enhance patient safety and reduce patient harm.
