21 Nov 2018

Kgosi Tshegofatso Setumo of Donga kgotla says one out of 17 babies born at Nyangabwe Referral Hospital (NRH) between January and November this year were born prematurely.

Kgosi Setumo said this during World Prematurity Day commemoration in Francistown recently.

The event was hosted under the theme: Working together, partnering with families in the care of small and sick newborns.

She explained that between January and November, out of the 4 457 births at the hospital, 260 were born prematurely.

“The latest world research indicates that approximately 15 million babies are born prematurely each year, accounting for about one in 10 of all babies born worldwide,” she added.

She also noted that the commemoration aimed to raise awareness of premature births and the impact they had on their families and the community. She added that it was an opportunity to reflect on the challenges the babies faced in their developmental journey.

Kgosi Setumo advised organisers of the event to work hard at publicising the day as it was crucial for the whole community to be aware of the commemoration and its importance.

Speaking at the commemoration, a midwife at NRH, Ms Thandi Khuwa explained that premature births could be caused by a number of issues such as illnesses and diseases, HIV/AIDS, having a history of giving birth prematurely, incompetent cervix and fibroids.

She noted that mothers could avoid giving birth prematurely by having planned pregnancies and consulting regularly with health care providers before becoming pregnant.

Ms Khuwa also added that choosing the appropriate age to have babies was crucial, adding that women should avoid having babies when they were below the age of 16 years or over 35 years, as it increased their chances of giving birth prematurely.

For her part, a medical doctor at the pediatric ward at NRH, Dr Ado Kabatunanga noted that during the care of a premature baby, follow-ups with doctors were crucial to find out if there was sufficient weight gain as well as to check whether the baby was developing well physically, mentally and neurologically.

She also stated that consistency in feeding was important in a premature baby, adding that they required frequent feeds of eight to 10 feeds a day.

Dr Kabatunanga also emphasised that premature babies should be fed breast milk.

She further added that separating premature babies from their mothers had negative effects on the child’s physiological stability as well as their psychological well being and brain development.

“Babies who spend significant time away from their parents are at high risk of developmental and behavioural problems, and becoming high risk for abuse and maltreatment following hospital discharge,” she added.

When giving a brief history of the day, Dr Mamiki Chise, a paediatric at NRH, said the World Prematurity Day started in 2008 in Europe by a group of parents and was later rolled out to the whole world in 2011.

She noted that in Francistown it was the second year NRH celebrated the day although last year it was an internal celebration in the hospital. ENDS