DOH sounds alarm over spike in maternal deaths in Northern Mindanao

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The death of a 27-year-old woman echoes the very warning health officials issued: a troubling increase in complications among mothers, which they link to inadequate prenatal care and 'nonchalant, carefree lifestyle'

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Ten days after giving birth, 27-year-old Almera Andagao was rushed to a government hospital in Cagayan de Oro on Saturday, May 17. She had been rushed from the upland village of Pigsag-an, nearly 30 kilometers away. By 2 pm on Monday, May 19, she was dead.

“Forty-two days after delivery is very crucial for the life of a mother,” said Dimple Olegario, senior health program officer at the Department of Health (DOH) Region X’s Family Health Cluster.

Olegario said pregnant women need to undergo eight prenatal checkups conducted by skilled healthcare professionals. The DOH’s Safe Motherhood Initiative recommends a 1-2-5 schedule: one visit in the first trimester, two in the second, and five in the third.

Andagao had been rushed to the city hall-run Justiniano Borja General Hospital (JRBGH) two days earlier due to shortness of breath.

Health officials who gathered at a public forum in a mall the day Angadao died to raise the alarm over the rising number of maternal deaths in Northern Mindanao had not yet heard of her case. But her story echoed the very warning they issued: a troubling increase in complications among mothers, which they linked to inadequate prenatal care and what they described as a “nonchalant, carefree lifestyle.”

Many of those who died were young, with some giving birth for the first time.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that Region X recorded a maternal mortality rate (MMR) of 5.5 per 100,000 live births in 2023 – the highest in five years, and significantly above the 4.1 rate in 2022. In 2019, the region had an MMR of 4.3, with 62 maternal deaths out of 1,458 recorded nationwide.

Olegario, the DOH-X’s focal person for safe motherhood, said high-risk pregnancies are usually identified during routine checkups. Those trained in emergency obstetric care are tasked with managing conditions such as gestational diabetes and hypertension.

She warned that women with few or no prenatal checkups face greater risks during childbirth, particularly if it’s their first pregnancy and they are between 20 and 30 years old. Risks are even higher for teenage mothers. The DOH, however, does not maintain disaggregated data on how many maternal deaths involved teenagers.

Dr. Tristan Jediah Labitad, head of the DOH-X’s non-communicable diseases cluster, said teenage mothers face higher risks of complications, both physical and mental, even in normal deliveries.

“Most likely, her womb is not fully developed,” he said, adding that teenage mothers require post-partum care because they are more likely to experience bleeding and spotting.

Labitad also warned that asymptomatic hypertension, increasingly common in people under 30 regardless of gender, should not be ignored.

Hypertension, defined as a blood pressure reading above 140/80, is measured using a sphygmomanometer. A normal reading is 120/80. The first number, systolic pressure, measures arterial pressure during heartbeats. The second, diastolic, measures it between beats when the heart rests.

Beyond maternal health, doctors at the forum also addressed reproductive health risks from human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection that can cause cervical cancer if it is of a high-risk type.

“Anyone sexually active can be exposed to HPV,” said Dr. Vaniza Bagolbol, the DOH-X’s focal person for cervical cancer screening and HPV vaccination.

Low-risk HPV types can cause genital warts around the vagina, anus, mouth, and throat. If they spread to the larynx or respiratory tract, they may cause breathing problems, medical literature shows.

Bagolbol said HPV spreads through vaginal, anal, or oral sex. A strong immune system often keeps the infection asymptomatic, which underscores the need for regular screening.

Still, “the shared facts in 2024” showed that 7,897 women in the country were diagnosed with cervical cancer, and 4,052 died, according to the DOH.

She said this is one reason the DOH, together with the Department of Education (DepEd), is pushing HPV vaccinations for girls aged 9 to 12. The vaccine protects against the HPV types that cause cancer and genital warts.

Data from the DOH-X’s health education and promotion unit showed that Northern Mindanao ranked third out of 17 regions in HPV vaccine coverage, with a 93.71% rate during the “Bakuna Eskwela” school-based immunization campaign in October and November 2024.

Bagolbol said their target was 90% of the eligible 46,804 girls. With strong cooperation from schools under DepEd Region X, they exceeded the goal, administering the vaccine to 49,994 girls across Northern Mindanao. – Rappler.com