Tiruchi’s Maternal Mortality Ratio comes down with increased monitoring

Representational image.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Tiruchi district has recorded a significant reduction in the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) largely due to the concerted effort by health authorities to track and monitor the condition of health of pregnant women.

According to official statistics, Tiruchi district’s MMR stood at 42.1 per 1,00,000 live births during the period 2024-2025 (April to January). A total of 11 maternal deaths were recorded out of 26,136 live births in the district.

Earlier, from April 2023 to March 2024, an MMR of 67.5 per 1,00,000 live births was recorded, with 22 maternal deaths out of 32,569 deliveries.

Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR)

“We have seen a 50% reduction of the MMR due to the campaign to improve maternal and child healthcare, and our ultimate goal is to reach zero deaths. The careful monitoring of high-risk pregnancies through district and state authorities has been a major reason for the decrease,” Deputy Director of Health Services V.C. Hemachand Gandhi, told The Hindu.

The maternal and child health helpline-cum-monitoring centre functioning out of the Collectorate has also aided in the reduction of the MMR.

“High-risk cases are being followed up from the District Call centre regularly. Around 150 calls are made per day to monitor the health of pregnant women who have high blood pressure, diabetes, and those who have conceived through in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment. All the registered mothers are contacted three months before their due date to check if they have been in touch with health professionals in the district,” she added.

The authorities have urged pregnant women to register themselves through the government’s online portal picme.tn.gov.in.

As a new step, a birth plan, detailing the hospital where the mother chooses to have the delivery, is decided during registration.

Officials at the maternal monitoring centre said that most pregnant women are reluctant to be admitted 10 days in advance to tertiary healthcare services. This increases the risk of health workers losing contact with high-risk pregnant women until the last minute, they said.

The control room arranges for Village Health Nurses (VHN) from Reproductive and Child Health to create awareness with the women who have been identified through the portal.