Kisumu county health officers have warned against home deliveries urging expectant mothers to practice hospital deliveries.
Medical analyst James Onyuka spoke at Avenue Hospital yesterday. Having checked a comprehensive report on expectant mothers’ deliveries, he challenged expectant mothers to avoid home deliveries and instead embrace hospital deliveries.
The medical analyst noted that home deliveries were not safer, and urged expectant mothers to practice hospital delivery as the hospital had expert staff for the job and equipment that was important in assisting the birth.
He noted that the advantage of hospital delivery was having immediate access to specialist care, and that the hospital was better equipped for all eventualities.
He also added that in the hospital one can stay for a while and is given a chance to recover from birth. Midwives are also there to help them get started with breastfeeding, and pertinent advice on topics like baby bathing and caring for umbilical stump.
His counterpart medical analyst Doctor Rose Oloo also challenged expectant mothers to visit clinics more often.
Oloo noted that through clinics attendance expectant mother would be nurtured in terms of service and education. Oloo emphasized that expectant mothers should be very prepared at all times, and that this would reduce home deliveries.
“We need to reduce home deliveries asking expectant mothers to avoid giving birth at home, as only the hospital is properly equipped to deal with any complications during the birth,” noted Oloo.