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Bruce Ndlovu, Sunday News Reporter
ONE in 10 pregnancies in the country end in abortion, with some women using sticks and coat hangers in unsafe and dangerous procedures, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care revealed last week.
At least 80 000 illegal abortions are carried out in the country every year, making it difficult for the country to control its maternal mortality rate, the health portfolio committee chairperson Dr Ruth Labode told the August House.
“One in 10 pregnancies in Zimbabwe ends up in abortion. Illegal abortions in Zimbabwe have increased from 60 000 to 80 000 per annum — which is very unsustainable.
“We have unsustainable costs of managing post-abortion complications in already overburdened health institutions. These girls go and have abortions by using sticks or coat hangers.
“When they bleed, they come to public institutions which are already burdened with other diseases,” she said.
Due to the unsafe procedures, Dr Labode said, other patients in hospitals were losing out as those that were taken to hospital after attempting to terminate pregnancies were given first priority.
“Once one goes to a public institution and is bleeding, it becomes an emergency. This patient will use blood which was supposed to be used for a road traffic accident to ensure that she survives. We use the antibiotic which could have been given to a pneumonia case on the same girl to ensure that she survives. She occupies a bed of another patient who could have come there but we have to provide all these services to her. This cost is not sustainable currently in Zimbabwe,” she said.
Dr Labode said Zimbabwe has one of the highest number of maternal deaths in the Sadc region, with the country lagging behind the rest of the region because of its high rate of teenage pregnancy and abortions.
“The other commitment was to reduce the number of unsafe abortions by increasing contraceptives. Reduce the number of maternal deaths averted due to the use of modern methods — our challenge is that our minors (girls or women below 16) are having sex and getting pregnant.
“After that, they are opting to give birth and sustain complications due to that birth or they opt to get an unsafe abortion in the backyard of Dzivarasekwa and Mufakose.Teenage pregnancies are on the increase and contributing 22 percent of the maternal mortality.
“Zimbabwe has an Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) which says by 2020/30, we would have reduced our maternal mortality. Right now we have the highest number of women dying because of maternal delivery in the Sadc region,” she said.
Dr Labode also said there was a need to relook at the country’s laws, as illegal abortions placed a big fiscal burden on the country while Zimbabwe also needed to prioritise the acquisition of contraceptives.
“The other issue is bad laws that promote unsafe abortion, overburden the public health system with unavoidable expenditure on post abortal complications. The cost of a safe abortion in Zambia is US$10 — that is to terminate unwanted pregnancy. The cost of treating a post-abortal complication is US$1 500 in a public institution. Can we really afford it? We really need to think about it.
Said Dr Labode: “What needs to be done is that the Ministry of Health needs to increase its budget for family planning from the current 1,7 to 30 percent of the health budget. The Reserve Bank (of Zimbabwe) needs to allocate foreign currency for procurement of contraceptives on a sliding scale. Slowly, we will move there. There should be free maternity health services at Government institutions. It must be enforced somehow. It must not be at the pleasure of whom you meet when you go to the hospital.”
Online Reporter