The Sekyere Central District Health Directorate in Ashanti Region has observed that non-adherence to family planning methods exposes pregnant mothers to maternal death and financial constraints.

The district had a marginal increase in the number of mothers enrolled into family planning from 18% to 19% between 2023 and 2024. Despite this gain, the health professionals believe the cooperation of stakeholders, especially families, could help the district achieve its 2024 target of 40%.

According to District Director of Health Services, Susana Nkrumah, parents who give birth to many children without adequate planning end up being poor, as a result of the demands of catering for them.

She was addressing the 2024 Annual Performance Review meeting.

"Family planning has a lot of benefits, in fact, mothers who don't practice birth spacing are at risk of dying from bleeding and other complications since the uterus may not recover from the previous delivery. Sometimes, when you give birth to so many children and you have to pay school fees, feed them and even provide clothing, it drains the entire family of their income and results in poverty," Mrs. Nkrumah said.

She further identified the need for families and religious institutions to see family planning as a necessary tool in fighting maternal deaths.

"Husbands should support their wives to do family planning. I call on religious leaders to help promote family planning to save mothers from maternal deaths," she stated.

Mrs. Nkrumah highlighted some challenges hampering health service delivery in the district.

"One of the major challenges we are faced with as an institution is lack of accommodation for staff. We call on stakeholders, NGOs and individuals to support the health service to accommodate its staff," she said.

The medical superintendent for Mampong Municipal Hospital, Dr. Kwasi Baffour Gyimah, expressed concerns about the rising cases of rabies and emphasized the need for vaccination.

"Mampong Municipal hospital is the referral point for the Sekyere Central district and it will interest you to know that we recorded a case of rabies. This calls for pragmatic steps to increase awareness creation and vaccination. I also urge all pregnant mothers to visit the Antenatal clinic regularly to ensure safe delivery in order to reduce maternal deaths," he said.