Kasungu hospital under abortion pressure

Statistics from Kasungu District Hospital have revealed that in 2015, the hospital gave 727 women post-abortion care, who terminated pregnancies unsafely.

This was revealed over the weekend when Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion (Copua) engaged traditional leaders and faith leaders on the Termination of Pregnancy Bill.

Rodney Chaula, a clinician at the hospital said the hospital receives a lot women who abort pregnancies using dangerous methods and later have complications.

He said the hospital treated 727 women who had aborted in 2015 and two of them lost their lives.

Said Chaula:“These cases are common at the hospital. The restrictions that are there on abortion, encourage women to do it unsafely by engaging dangerous methods.”

Copua community mobilisation chairperson Darlington Harawa said unsafe abortion remains a big challenge to Malawi in as far as achieving zero maternal deaths is concerned.

He said: “The country loses about K300 million annually on post abortion care through medicines and equipment. About 100 000 pregnancies are aborted yearly, which also contributes to 17 percent of all maternal deaths.”

Copua engaged the faith leaders, chiefs and politicians in Kasungu District to garner support for the bill. n