Jaipur, Jul 14 (PTI) The Rajasthan government is set to launch a five-day statewide campaign from Wednesday to screen all pregnant women for key health parameters.
Announcing the move on Tuesday, Principal Secretary (Medical and Health) Gayatri Rathore said the intensive screening drive aims to strengthen maternal and child health services and further reduce maternal mortality in the state.
“A five-day drive will be conducted from July 15 under which intensive screening of all pregnant women will be carried out across the state,” Rathore said.
During the campaign, records of important antenatal check-ups of pregnant women will be maintained to ensure regular monitoring of their health, she added.
The move comes in the wake of several recent cases of maternal deaths reported from districts including Kota, Bikaner, Bhilwara and Banswara.
Rathore issued directions to medical officers across districts via video conference, warning that any negligence in health check-ups and regular screening of pregnant women would invite accountability. “Any kind of negligence in the health examination and regular screening of pregnant women will lead to responsibility being fixed on ASHA workers, concerned employees and officers.” She stressed that every maternal death is extremely serious and ensuring quality healthcare services from the beginning of pregnancy to delivery and the postnatal period is the government’s top priority.
Highlighting the importance of early detection, Rathore said, “In most maternal death cases, identification and timely management of high risk pregnancy is crucial.” She directed officials to ensure registration of every pregnant woman within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and timely entry of all details on the designated portal.
Rathore also mandated that each pregnant woman must undergo at least four quality antenatal care (ANC) check-ups.
Officials were further instructed to conduct an initial analysis of every maternal death within 24 hours, undertake weekly reviews of high-risk pregnancies and maternal deaths and fix accountability in cases of negligence.
The statement added that strict adherence to standard operating procedures and national guidelines for safe motherhood services must be ensured across districts. PTI AG ARB ARB
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