Maternal deaths are steadily decreasing, according to data provided by the Health Ministry to Parliament yesterday.
In a written response to the Opposition, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said during the period 2010 to 2015, there were 48 maternal deaths. The highest death number came in 2010 with 13 deaths.
The death toll dropped to six in 2011 and increased by one the next year and the following year. It dropped to five in 2014 and then jumped to nine the year after.
Between October 1, 2020, to September 30, 2024, there were 16 maternal deaths, the answer stated.
In the response provided by the Health Minister, of the 16 deaths, the Mt Hope Women’s Hospital had the highest number with seven. Scarborough and Port-of-Spain tied with three deaths during the period, with San Fernando recording two deaths and the Sangre Grande Hospital one death in the five years.
No information was provided for the years 2015 to 2020.
During his visits to mothers on Christmas Day last year, Deyalsingh said thanks to healthcare professionals’ implementation of policies, the maternal death toll was decreasing.
Unlike the first five-year period in his responses, the death toll was not disaggregated by years for 2020-2024.
Last year, the Health Minister boasted that there were no maternal deaths across the regional health authorities. He added then that maternal death rates had been steadily declining since 2016.
