Health Minister John Junor (second right) speaks with Harold Robinson (left), UNFPA representative; Anna Treasure (second left), environmental advisor at the Pan American Health Organisation; and Bertand Bainvel (right), UNICEF representative to Jamaica. Occasion was the opening of the Safe Motherhood Conference at the Hilton Hotel in Kingston, yesterday. (Photo: Joseph Wellington)

HEALTH Minister John Junor says a recently formed ministry committee, headed by Dr Wynante Patterson, has been reviewing the legislation regarding abortion and should submit its recommendations in another two months.

".They have had their discussions with a number of practitioners and are looking at the statistics to pull the report together," Junor said. "I would expect that in another two months or so we would have a report."

Speaking with reporters after the Safe Motherhood conference at the Hilton Hotel in Kingston yesterday, Minister Junor said doctors have expressed concern that the stipulations of the law regarding abortion were too vague and that this has contributed to the island's maternal mortality rate (MMR) as a number of these procedures endanger the lives of many women.

Abortions are illegal in Jamaica and can only be done under circumstances where the pregnancy threatens the health of the mother.

"The doctors are concerned that as the law currently exists, where there is the perceived threat to the life of the mother they may perform an abortion. (But) that is a very nebulous situation because it not just to the health of the mother (it is also) mental and psychological health and physical health it is not clear," he said. "The time periods are not defined as such (either)," said the health minister.

He added: "The object is to reduce the number of back room abortions which take place and where you see deaths from sepsis or botch abortions. Sixteen per cent of maternal death in adolescents are related to botched abortions."

At the same time, Minister Junor said a national debate on the issues relating to abortion is needed, which, he said, would not only educate people about the consequences of having back room abortions, but also explore the ethical side of the issue.

"There is a moral situation where some people take the position that (in terms of the) fertilised egg any action to deal with that constitutes an abortion. That is not a view that is held by some people some, people feel that there is a period after which you may classify the fetus as having viability to survive as a human being. The question is do you legalise or put in statue the provisions that would govern circumstances under which abortion could be made legal."

Junor said, too, that a national committee is to be established to monitor maternal mortality. It will be headed by Dr Leslie Bernard.
He said that Jamaica's maternal mortality rate has remained constant despite several improvements and significant achievements within the health system and is likely to miss the UN's Millennium Development Goal, which calls for a 75 per cent reduction by 2015. The health ministry, he said, needs to redouble its efforts to meet the UN target, which stipulated that based on Jamaica's reproductive strategic health plan the fertility rate should be lowered from 2.8 to 2.4 and the maternal mortality rate, from 106 to 80 per 100,000 by 2005.

"If we look at Jamaica's maternal mortality rate it has remained at 106 in 100,000 live births over the last 20 years. The major causes of death continue to be hypertensive disease/eclampsia, haemorrhage and sepsis. However, these direct causes have been declining over the past four years, while indirect causes such as HIV/AIDS, violence, and other chronic conditions such as obesity have been increasing," the health minister told the conference.

Junor told the conference that there was a need for an upgrading of the obstetrics records in hospitals in order to improve data collection and analysis. "The paper system that we have is not going to cut it," he said.

He also highlighted the need to have accurate and timely surveillance of maternal deaths, as well as the implementation of corrective measures, based on the findings.

davidsont@jamaicaobserver.com

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