Strengthen referral systems to save preterm babies – PSG

THE Paediatric Society of Ghana (PSG) has launched this year’s Prematurity Awareness Month with a call for urgent efforts to strengthen newborn referral systems across the country to improve the survival of premature babies.

It warned that delays, inadequate transportation and the lack of specialised equipment at health facilities continued to put the lives of premature babies at risk.

“Our referral system should not cause more complications and challenges. We should not add more to the burden these babies already have,” Consultant Neonatologist and Head of the Mother and Baby Unit at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), Dr Adwoa Eno Boakye-Yiadom, said.

She called for improved coordination between health facilities, reliable transportation and better-equipped newborn units to ensure the safe transfer of premature babies.

On the theme, “Every journey matters: safe referral, equitable care and follow-up for every preterm baby,” the month-long campaign seeks to raise awareness of prematurity and promote improved care, safe transportation and continued monitoring of babies after discharge.

According to the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS), Ghana records approximately 128,000 premature births annually, with an estimated 8,400 deaths.

Although the country’s preterm birth rate declined from 13 per cent in 2008 to 9.1 per cent in 2022, prematurity remains a major contributor to newborn deaths.

Dr Boakye-Yiadom observed that difficulties in securing beds at receiving facilities, incomplete referral notes and poor communication between hospitals were among the challenges affecting referral processes. Read More.

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