Maternal and Child Health Expert and CEO of MamaCare by Racheal, Mrs. Racheal Hesse Matey, has warned that unresolved conflicts among obstetric care providers are indirectly contributing to maternal and neonatal mortality.
Speaking at the Annual Health Conference on topics including Maternal and Neonatal Mortality, Health Law as a Core Element of Medical Negligence, and Professionalism and Ethics, she said internal disagreements and failure to adhere to agreed protocols among caregivers on duty often result in misdiagnosis, improper interventions, and poor coordination, with patients bearing the brunt.
She explained that when staff on the same shift are not on good terms, patient care suffers, stressing that interpersonal conflicts should be resolved as quickly as possible because they directly or indirectly affect the mother and the unborn child.
She, therefore, called on health facilities and training institutions to prioritise teamwork, communication and conflict resolution as part of efforts to reduce preventable maternal deaths.
Mrs. Hesse Matey underscored the need for midwives to continuously upgrade their knowledge and show greater commitment to patient care in order to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality.
According to her, if a midwife’s knowledge is deficient compared to that of the patient, it poses a serious problem that could contribute to maternal deaths.
‘And if you don’t have the knowledge to care for your patients, then we are talking about maternal mortality. So it’s very important that midwives out there, when they are coming, it’s not just to pass your exams, but you are indeed coming to put to practice whatever knowledge you have acquired. And it doesn’t end after the training,’ she stressed.
Mrs. Hesse Matey further cautioned trainees against excessive use of mobile phones and social media while on duty, stressing that every moment spent with a patient counts.
‘Their time with their patients should be valued when they are on the ward, and not to spend so much time on their phones. When you are with your patients, with the mother and the baby, the less chance you are losing either of them,’ she stated.
She called on tutors, ward in-charges and supervisors to continue discouraging the use of phones for social media during working hours, and to emphasise patient-centred care from the classroom to the clinical setting.
Specialist Obstetrician Gynaecologist at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Elikem Oklu, disclosed that Ghana has the statistics, drugs, expertise and facilities to prevent maternal and neonatal deaths, yet women continue to die from preventable causes.
Speaking at the Annual Health Conference, he said the main challenge is the failure to translate knowledge into practice.
‘Why are women still dying in the midst of all this knowledge? It’s because for most of us, we do not make a connection between what we know and what we do,’ Dr. Oklu said.
He challenged nurses and midwives not to be the type who can write essays on postpartum haemorrhage but fail to save a woman in an emergency.
‘Time is of the essence. There have been cases where a woman is deteriorating and a nurse says ‘I’m opening the folder’ or ‘I’m charting vitals.’ There’s a thin line between life and death,’ he noted.
Dr. Oklu stressed that simple interventions save lives – accurate vital signs, recognising shock, and monitoring newborns for hypothermia.
He also emphasised attitude and institutional culture, saying empathy during emergencies can make a difference even when outcomes are poor.
He urged open communication on the wards, proper referrals, and commitment to duty.
‘A pregnant woman is not a sick person, so she should not die. If she dies, it must be looked into carefully,’ he said, adding that the first minute, first hour and first day are crucial to survival.
Lecturer at the University of Ghana School of Law, Ms. Rachel Haizel, stated that Ghana is not suing medical facilities and health professionals enough for medical negligence.
She said the low rate of litigation has emboldened poor professional conduct in some health facilities.
‘A lot of hospitals, a lot of medical facilities are being sued. We are not suing them enough. If you see the kind of treatment that some of these health practitioners give to their patients, it’s horrible,’ she said.
She cautioned health professionals that anyone who comes into contact with them as patients is owed a duty of care, which must be discharged with reasonable care and skill in line with expected standards.
Ms. Haizel urged practitioners to think about the foreseeable consequences of their actions, warning that negligence, such as failing to read prescriptions or administering the wrong medication leading to death, will attract legal action.