CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – In Central Luzon, six out of 1,000 live births do not reach their first month of life, while 14 out of 1,000 infants die before their first birthday.
This, even as 19 out of 1,000 children die before reaching their fifth birthday.
These were among the latest statistics gathered by Punto from the regional office of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) here.
PSA regional director Edgar Pare also noted that 16 out of every 1,000 pregnancies of at least seven months duration are still births or neonatal deaths in his region.
Pare said these deaths are classified as “perinatal mortalities” which comprise “still births or pregnancy losses occurring after seven months of gestation and early neonatal deaths or deaths of live births within the first seven days of life.”
While these statistics appear dismal, PSA data on “journey to motherhood” appeared ironically rather positive.
It said 94 percent of women aged 15 to 49 in Central Luzon with live birth received antenatal care from skilled provider, such as doctors, nurses and midwives.
However, 74 percent of them got postnatal care only during the first two days after birth.
The PSA also noted that 85 percent of births in the region were delivered in health facilities, and that 93 percent of all live births were assisted by doctors, nurses or midwives.
Statistics also indicated that in Central Luzon, 18 percent of births were delivered by Caesarian section, and that 32 percent of the women reported difficulty in accessing financial help for health care access when they fall ill.
