Article by Inna Burova, "Neutral Turkmenistan" newspaper, on the occasion of the International Day of the Midwife

Ask any woman: if she remembers the name of the midwife, who helped her child to be born? Certainly, most will not hesitate to answer, and no matter how much time has passed - a few days or decades. After all, the midwife is a person who accompanies the future mother throughout her pregnancy, and on whom depends the birth outcomes, health of a young mother and her newborn child. Such qualities as compassion, understanding, boundless patience and, of course, first of all, professionalism are essential for the people of this profession.

A newborn baby is a big celebration, joy and happiness in each family. All the concerns and expectations are behind, and only the happiness with the little one is ahead.  Therefore, every day in the hospital is a holiday. Flowers never fade under the windows with happy fathers, newly bestowed grandparents and roars of "Congratulations." Everyone, who steps over the threshold of this building, its history, which is now forever imprinted in family albums, and in memory of almost all its members, except the most important - those who are just beginning to discover the world.

But today everyone has a great opportunity to gratefully remember the people whose hands have taken us into this world.

The 5th of May traditionally celebrated as the International Day of Midwives -
professional holiday of those who play a key role in ensuring greater safety in childbirth. This holiday was established by the International Confederation of Midwives, which includes 88 midwifery associations from 75 countries, in 1987 in Netherlands. This day has been regularly celebrated since 1992 and today in more than 50 countries. The theme of the day this year is "Midwives: health heroes for women, adolescent girls and newborns”.

In his statement on the occasion of this day, UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin said: “On this International Day of the Midwife, UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, salutes the contribution of midwives to saving the lives of women, adolescent girls and newborns, sometimes under very difficult circumstances, in hard-to-reach communities, in humanitarian emergencies, and in fragile and conflict-torn countries."

He noted, “Well-trained and supported midwives working in communities are uniquely positioned to provide the compassionate, respectful and culturally sensitive care a woman needs during pregnancy and childbirth. Midwifery is equally important for newborns during the critical first month of life, and is a significant contribution to sexual and reproductive health in general. Midwives are, therefore, essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals."

Today in Turkmenistan, mother and child healthcare take up one of the first places in the state health policy, which continues to achieve visible results. Virtually all maternity hospitals of the country hold high status of the "child-friendly hospital" officially confirmed by WHO experts. Fertility rate, population, and the average life expectancy in Turkmenistan continue to rise. This result was achieved and thanks to the implementation of a number of national programs. Evidence of this - series of international certifications.

One of the new important developments is the opening of the new Mother and Child Health Care Clinical Research Centre in Ashgabat last year. The network of health facilities continue expanding in rural areas and conform to the international standards and meet the norms for the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations. Due to the ongoing reforms in the national health care with focus on international standards, Turkmenistan aims to provide high quality of medical services to every citizen of Turkmenistan.

Significant role in the success of public policy plays cooperation with international organizations, above all, the UN agencies. Therefore, the partnership between the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan and UNFPA continues to grow within the framework of a number of joint programmes.

The strategic partnership between UNFPA and Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan in the last twenty years contributed to strengthened health system in the country to effectively deliver mother/newborn and family planning services. In the last few years, UNFPA worked together with the Government of Turkmenistan in development of three National Strategies, two National Programmes and three National Action Plans on reproductive health, cervical cancer, response to HIV and adolescents’ health, as well as 49 clinical protocols on maternal and newborn health services.  Turkmenistan conducted Health Behavior in School-aged Children survey, first in Central Asian region, the results of which served as the basis for the National Strategy on Mothers, Children and Adolescents health.

It’s notable that the quality of maternal and newborn services continues to improve country-wide, including the remote areas. Among other interventions, this is also the result of UNFPA and Ministry's work, where the list of competencies for professional midwives was adopted based on the recommendations of the WHO and International Confederation of Midwives, as well as increased number of midwives in the country. 

... The world is changing; new technologies, knowledge and treatments come into our lives. Today, parents have a chance to receive the services others earlier could only dream about. However, only they remain unchanged - the kind and gentle, experienced and professional hands of the midwives.

Inna Burova, Neutral Turkmenistan
(read the original in Russian)