National Nurses Association of Kenya has called for training of more midwives in the country, to address the current shortage.
Chairperson of the Midwives Chapter of the National Nurses Association of Kenya Ms Louisa Muteti, said shortage of midwives in the country has led to deaths of expectant mothers and their unborn babies.
Ms Muteti said the last time midwives were trained was nine years ago which has resulted in the absence of specialists to take care of expectant mothers and new born babies.
She said that currently the country has about 71 midwives, most of them being in the retirement age, with others opting to leave the profession for greener pasture.
Speaking during an event to mark the International Day of the Midwife, Ms Muteti said the safety of pregnant women and their babies during childbirth maybe at risk if the matter is not addressed early enough.
“The country is faced with a serious problem of maternal death due to shortage of trained midwives to help women during pregnancy, birth and after delivery. The last class to be trained in midwifery was in 2006. Since then, no midwives have been trained. Midwifery has been incorporated in nursing," said Muteti.
She added, “We request the government to embrace midwifery specialization with sub-specialty like neonatal care, paediatrics care, research and community midwifery so that we can achieve our Beyond Zero goal for mothers and newborns.”