State of the World Mothers 2010: Women on the front lines of health care
New report and Ad Council Campaign show how women health workers can save children's lives, fill key health care gaps around the world
4 MAY 2010 | WESTPORT, Conn. — To address the global shortfall of 4.3 million health care workers needed to end preventable maternal and child deaths, countries must invest in women who are front-line health care workers, Save the Children says in its new State of the World's Mothers 2010 report.
In commemoration of Mother's Day, Save the Children is publishing its eleventh annual State of the World's Mothers report. The focus is on the critical shortage of health workers in the developing world and the urgent need for more female health workers to save the lives of mothers, newborn babies and young children.
Together with the Ad Council, Save the Children is launching a public service advertising campaign and companion website GoodGoes.org to help Americans "See Where the Good Goes™" -- highlighting how investments in women health workers on the front lines can save the lives of children who might otherwise die from pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria and other preventable or treatable causes.
Annually, 8.8 million children die before their fifth birthday and nearly 350,000 women die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth. Most of these deaths could be prevented if skilled and equipped health care providers were available in communities and clinics. The new three-year Ad Council/Save the Children campaign will showcase these ordinary heroes – health workers and midwives – at work around the world. The "See Where the Good Goes™" ads will be distributed to 33,000 media outlets nationwide and reach Americans through donated TV, print, radio and online advertising and social media.
Women front-line health workers are particularly critical to reducing preventable maternal and child deaths. Save the Children's State of the World's Mothers 2010
The report lays out evidence that women with limited formal education can be trained to successfully deliver life-saving services – such as breastfeeding counseling, post-natal care, vaccines and antibiotics. It also highlights the critical need for midwives to close the gap in skilled attendance at birth. Annually, around 50 million women give birth with no professional help. "Without putting more women on the front lines of health care provision, the world will never overcome the extreme shortages that are deadly for poor children and women," Powers said. "The wonderful added benefit of training women is that it encourages female education and workforce participation, which are also linked to better health and economic security for moms and their kids."