Topic:
Country: Philippines
Delegate Name: Annabelle Dyck
Many countries struggle to provide general health care to their citizens, but maternal health care seems to be the most challenging battle. Mother mortality rates have decreased over the years yet it is still a concern as the goal is zero deaths. In developing countries, the lack of resources and money are the leading factors of insufficient maternal health services. In many cases, mothers do not have the education or budget to visit a doctor or clinic before, during, and after pregnancy. When a mother dies, the chance of the newborn surviving childhood is half of what it was.
The Republic of the Philippines has taken past and current actions to improve maternal health. The United Nations Population Fund Agency (UNFPA) has worked with the Department of Health (DOH) to create the Philippines National Safe Motherhood Program (NSMAP). This program has worked to provide access to health assistance for all women. It has become important to educate and inform women about sexual and reproductive education. There has also been action to equalize the use of maternal healthcare in poorer and richer households. In 2011, Universal Health Care (UHC) was formed in the Philippines, but there were still equality issues. Low-income women still had a higher chance of pregnancy complications and sometimes death.
The Philippines would like to improve women’s health, especially maternal health. Policies from 2008 have shown an improvement in health insurance coverage for all socioeconomic brackets, but there is still inequality for lower-income mothers. They would like to make health services available for all Filipinos. More education about pregnancies and motherhood would decrease the maternal mortality rate which is currently 121 per 1,000 births. It would be recommended to create more organizations to deploy health supplies to pregnant women and mothers. The Philippines would like to work with other Eastern Asia countries that struggle with the same issues. They also would consider allying with the United States of America. Their goal is to bring more awareness of maternal health to every socioeconomic class.
