Ministry of Health: Increase in maternal deaths from Covid-19 and other causes such as eclampsia reported

18 Jun, 2021

The Ministry of Health (MSP Y BS) reported that in recent weeks, the SARS-Cov2 virus has positioned itself as the leading cause of death among women in the period of pregnancy, childbirth and puerperium, while generating a considerable increase in the total number of deaths in this sector of the population. “There has been an exponential increase in the number of maternal deaths caused by Covid 19, most of which occurred in the months of April and May 2021, surpassing other causes such as eclampsia, haemorrhage and sepsis, which have historically occupied the first place of death in this population group,” says a report shared on the official MSPy BS website.

https://www.mspbs.gov.py/portal/23241/embarazo-en-tiempos-de-pandemia.html

By the end of May, 76 maternal deaths had been recorded, 45 of them confirmed with Covid-19, representing 60% of the total. The age group ranges from 18 to 46 years of age, according to the MSP communication.

On Saturday, 5 June, Paraguay received 99,600 doses of the Modern vaccine against the coronavirus, out of a total of 400,000 donated by the Government of Qatar. The vaccines will be given to pregnant women from 18 years of age and 20 weeks of pregnancy onwards.

“E-Day” vaccination for pregnant women only

The Ministry of Health has established Saturday 19 June as “E Day” for vaccinating pregnant women, from 07:00 to 17:00 hours. This Saturday, the Ministry of Health will focus its vaccination campaign exclusively on pregnant women, over 18 years of age and 20 weeks of gestation or more, on a day that the Ministry of Health has called “E Day”, as announced at a press conference on Wednesday.

Some 12,000 pregnant women have already registered in the Ministry’s database, although so far some 4,000 pregnant women have been vaccinated with the Moderna doses intended for this group, according to official sources. The Director of Health Programmes of the Ministry of Public Health, Patricia Veiluva, talks about the most important recommendations for pregnant and lactating women in these times of pandemic, taking into account the local context.

Health crisis: small acts of solidarity, great satisfaction

18 Jun, 2021

The institution carried out solidarity initiatives in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, at a time of significant increases in the number of infections and deaths as a result of the disease.

Paraguay is going through a third wave of COVID-19 with a significant upturn, while at the national level the same high plateau continues, with around 14,000 cases per week, according to official sources from the Ministry of Public Health.

Public and private hospitals are overcrowded with patients and the number of beds in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is at an all-time high. In view of this sad reality and in response to the various recurring needs incurred by the families of patients for the treatment of the families hospitalised in the different health care centres, the FJRE team made a modest contribution which was applied to solidarity and healthy breakfasts for the families of patients who are waiting for news of their hospitalised patients. In addition, fixed or conventional stretchers were donated to the Hospital de Clínicas and the Hospital de Barrio Obrero.

On 30 March we offered the first healthy breakfast for about 100 people. On the same day stretchers were delivered to the Hospital de Clínicas (San Lorenzo) and the Hospital de Barrio Obrero (Asunción). On the 20th of April again a team of the foundation was present in front of the contingency ward in the Hospital de Villa Elisa and also in the Hospital San Pablo de Asunción, providing the second batch of breakfasts for more than 150 people.

The Rassmuss Foundation is grateful for the valuable support of generous benefactors who contributed to this initiative in such difficult times.

In 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, the FJRE led an important support campaign, gathering the support of 10 banks and an equal number of generous benefactor families, donating US$ 140,000 worth of supplies to the Ministry of Health.