Parents of premature babies seek more maternity leave days

A s Uganda joined other countries to commemorate World Prematurity Day yesterday, parents of premature babies have appealed to the government to increase their maternity and paternity leave days.

“The time required to take care of a baby born prematurely is long, three months [currently allowed] are not enough,” Mr Bazilo Kateregga of Preterm Parents Network Uganda said.

He added: “We are requesting that the days be extended to 180 to ensure that the mother is not left in a state where they have to choose between their babies and their jobs.”

A premature baby is one who is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Mr Kateregga said many mothers lose their jobs because of the long stay in hospital.

“We believe that extending the leave days will address this problem in that they don’t need to choose between their jobs and their babies,” he added. According to the Employment Act of 2006, an employed woman is entitled to 60 working days of paid maternity leave while a husband is entitled to a paternity leave of four working days. Ms Isabelle Furaha Muhindi, a mother who produced preterm babies twice and also the founder of Mama Tulia Foundation, said extending the leave days will improve the survival rates of premature babies.

“We need an extension on maternity and paternity leave. When I gave birth the first time, my baby died and then the second time, I had to choose to leave my work so that I could look after my baby so that she could live.

Giving us more leave days can be very helpful,” she said. According to government statistics, about 14 percent of all births are preterm, which translates to about 200,000 premature babies born every year amid high death rates among them because of limited care. Unicef stated that this year's theme, ‘Over 13 million babies born prematurely every year.

Access to quality care everywhere!’ which, they said, highlights the “stark global disparities in healthcare and calls for universal access to high-quality care for preterm babies, regardless of their birth circumstances or location.”

Ministry speaks out

Commenting on the proposal from parents, Dr Charles Olaro, the director of Curative Services at the Health Ministry, said: “For the mothers, it might be very easy to move but there is even doubt whether fathers have been using four days appropriately so giving them extra days (from four to 30), there might be a lot of challenges, but this can be discussed.”

Dr Diana Atwine, the permanent secretary of the Health Ministry, also said they are improving quality and access to care for babies that are born preterm. This includes the establishment of neonatal intensive care units, incubators, and the provision of other specialised services for newborns.

“In Uganda, about 14 percent of all births are preterm; that is a high number. This translates to about 200,000 [premature babies] born every year and 13,000 die before they reach their fifth birthday. They [premature babies] die because of complications related to prematurity,” Dr Atwine said.

Dr Olaro on the other hand said the major causes of premature birth in Uganda include malaria, hypertension in pregnancy, urinary tract infections, and diabetes. He said there is a need to increase prevention and also ensure antenatal care visits to detect these conditions early and manage well.

“Forty-five (45) percent of these babies are born in health centre IIIs. So, if we are to move any investment then we have to put them there and then HCIVs and then have very good referral systems,” he added.

Save the Children Uganda noted that there is a need to raise awareness, support families, and work towards a future where every child thrives.

Numbers

According to government statistics, about 14 percent of all births are preterm, which translates to about 200,000 premature babies born every year amid high death rates among them because of limited care.