First Lady Ernestina Naadu Mills has called for an end to strikes by doctors as a major step to fighting maternal mortality in the country. She said strikes should not be used as a bargaining tool for doctors, explaining, the consequences have been devastating mostly on pregnant women. “…When a pregnant woman in labour struggles through the delays and gets to the health centre and the doctor is on strike, won’t she die?” the First Lady asked participants at the Regional Launch of the accelerated reduction of maternal mortality in Africa at Elmina in the Central Region. “Let’s talk to our doctor friends, brothers and sisters because they are adding to the number of maternal deaths and it is not right,” she added. Joy News’ Central Region correspondent Richard Kojo Nyarko quoting Dr. Gloria Quansah Asare, Director, Family Health Division of the Ghana Health Service, reported that 900 women died in 2010 at the various health facilities in the country. The first lady stated that a conscious effort must be made by all to educate women on their reproductive life and to reduce the rate of maternal deaths. “We as a country have decided to reprioritize our domestic resources to save the lives of women. Through this campaign I call on all of you to give every woman the information and support she needs to control her reproductive life…” she said. She called on all District and Metropolitan Chief Executives to commit resources to the fight against maternal mortality. The Ghana Health Service described as unacceptably high, the number of maternal deaths in the country. The Director of the Family Health Division of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Gloria Quansah Asare said a lot more work needs to be done to save the lives of mothers and children. According to her, 350 women out of 100,000 lose their lives shortly after delivery, adding more than a quarter of the death occurs in the first month of life. Kojo Nyarko reported that Taxi drivers in the Central Region who carried pregnant women to nearest health facilities were awarded for their humanitarian gestures. Play the audio for Richard Kojo Nyarko's report