A woman dies during pregnancy or childbirth every two hours in Kenya, according to a new report from MacArthur grantees Family Care International and the International Center for Research on Women, and the KEMRI-CDC Research and Public Health Collaboration. The report is the first to attempt to scientifically calculate the impact of a mother’s death on her family’s financial stability, health and well-being. The report shows that often maternal death is directly linked to neonatal mortality, causes disruption to child education and separation of families, and creates stressors among the remaining family. The researchers stress that as the UN Millennium Development Goals deadline approaches, these findings are critically important as countries like Kenya work to accelerate their progress in reducing preventable deaths among their most vulnerable populations.
