UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 14, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – Nearly 30 million babies are
born prematurely or become sick every year and of those 2.5 million die,
mostly from preventable causes, a global coalition of concerned organizations
said in a new report on Thursday.
It finds that among the newborn babies most at risk of death and disability
are those with complications from being premature, brain injury during
childbirth, severe bacterial infection or jaundice, and those with congenital
conditions.
The report, “Survive and Thrive: Transforming care for every small and sick
newborn,” was produced by a coalition of organizations supporting the “Every
Newborn” action plan of the “Every Woman Every Child” movement sponsored by
the UN Secretary-General’s office.
The coalition includes the UN Children’s Agency (UNICEF) and the UN’s World
Health Organization (WHO) which released the report at UN Headquarters and in
New Delhi, India, for the “Partners’ Forum of the Partnership for Maternal,
Newborn and Child Health.”
“When it comes to babies and their mothers, the right care at the right
time in the right place can make all the difference,” said Omar Abdi, UNICEF
deputy executive director. “Yet millions of small and sick babies and women
are dying every year because they simply do not receive the quality care that
is their right and our collective responsibility.”
Without specialized treatment, many at-risk newborns won’t survive their
first month of life, according to the report. In 2017, some 2.5 million
newborns died, mostly from preventable causes. Other infants with chronic
diseases need special care for the rest of theirs lives.
The study also showed that the financial and psychological toll on their
families can have detrimental effects on their cognitive, linguistic and
emotional development.
Almost two-thirds of babies who die were born premature, it said, but added
that even if they did survive they faced chronic diseases or developmental
delays. An estimated 1 million small and sick newborns survive with a long-
term disability.
However, the report said that with nurturing care, the babies could live
without major complications.
It said that by 2030, in 81 countries, the lives of 2.9 million women,
stillborns and newborns could be saved with smarter strategies.
Almost 68 percent of newborn deaths could be averted in 2030 with simple
fixes such as exclusive breastfeeding; skin-to-skin contact between the
mother or father and the baby; medicines and essential equipment; and access
to clean, well-equipped health facilities staffed by skilled health workers,
the report said.
In addition to WHO and UNICEF, other organizations involved in making the
report included the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Save the Children,
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and USAID.