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Dear friends,
Any woman can have a preterm baby. But while prematurity strikes without prejudice, survival rates are anything but equal: the risk of a neonatal death due to complications of preterm birth is at least 12 times higher for an African baby than for a European baby.
With known, effective, low-cost practices to reduce the risk of preterm birth and related complications, nearly one million lives lost each year to prematurity is both tragic and unacceptable.
This World Prematurity Day, MCSP honored the 15 million babies #borntoosoon by stressing the need for quality care for the smallest. In 27 countries, we’re using targeted interventions – before and during pregnancy, at delivery, and after birth – to prevent maternal and child deaths, including those resulting from preterm birth.
November is host to three other advocacy moments close to our hearts – World Pneumonia Day, World Toilet Day, and World Children’s Day. All of these underscore the ongoing threats to the world’s most vulnerable children reaching their full potential.
I encourage you to share your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter. We’d love to hear from you!
Koki Agarwal, MD, MPH, DrPH
Director
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