Every 52 minutes...

... an Indonesian woman dies giving birth. That is from the latest statistics published in the State of World's Midwifery report late last year. That means about 10,000 Indonesian women will die this year alone, many from complications that could have been prevented or treated.

There is good news though too... in the last twenty years Indonesia has significantly reduced their maternal mortality from 620 maternal deaths per 100,000 women giving birth to 240. The goal is to reduce that number even lower to 155 maternal deaths per 100,000 women by 2015. Compare that to 24 women in the US.

In urban areas they have also done well at educating and providing resources to their maternity care providers including doctors, midwives, and nurses. Unfortunately, there is still a large gap in care for those who live in urban versus rural locations. Many who leave their villages and communities to attend school to become nurses and midwives do not return to those home areas, which are in desperate need of skilled birth providers. Life in the city is different with easy access to many amenities and level of living not available in the villages. There is also the allure of financial gain by practicing in the city.

Babies in Indonesia also struggle with 19 of every 1000 babies born dying in the first month. Compare that to 4 in the United States. In addition, 15 of every 1000 babies born are stillborn. It is thought that many of those born still or that die in the first month could be saved by a simple form of neonatal resuscitation by a skilled birth attendant. Finally, 41 of every 1000 babies born die before they reach their 5th birthday. In the US that number is around 8. Many of these children are dying from disease preventable by immunizations, clean water, and treating dehydration.

Finally the last statistic that caught my eye was that Indonesia needs 3,560 additional nurses, midwives and doctors trained as skilled birth providers so that 95% of all of births in Indonesia can be attended by a skilled birth attendant.

As a trained nurse-midwife hopefully I can help meet some of those needs in my small area of Indonesia, but more importantly I hope I can train and teach others as I work at the nursing school near the hospital. Many of these young people return to their villages and communities and some have committed to serve in other areas of need.

This video from the World Health Organization has some of the latest statistics from around the world as well as information on preventing and treating many of the problems associated with maternal, infant, and child mortality.