KATHMANDU, JULY 8
Family Welfare Division, Department of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Population in collaboration with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Maternity Foundation (MF) launched a Nepali version of the widely used digital health tool, the Safe Delivery App - a mobile application that supports midwives and other healthcare professionals in ensuring safer births for women and newborns in low-resource settings.
The Safe Delivery App is an evidence-based learning and training tool designed to support midwives, nurses, and other healthcare professionals to assist during births and to manage the most common complications. Among other features, it contains the latest clinical guidelines, animated instruction videos, descriptions of practical procedures, and action cards. It is free and once downloaded on a smartphone or a tablet, it works offline, making it possible to be used even in the most remote areas, according to the press statement issued by the UNFPA.
"To date, more than 435,000 healthcare professionals across more than 70 countries have been reached through the Safe Delivery App and the accompanying programme worldwide, with Nepal being the latest country to introduce the App."
Speaking at the launch of the Nepali version of the Safe Delivery App in Kathmandu, Dr. Bibek Kumar Lal, Director, Family Welfare Division, Department of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Population stated the Safe Delivery App complements and enhances the ongoing capacity building efforts by providing up-to-date lifesaving procedures and practical guidance in local language. Its aim is to improve the quality of emergency obstetric and newborn care and the main users will be our frontline health workers especially nurses and midwives. We will work with provincial governments and development partners to quickly rollout the App throughout Nepal.
The maternal mortality rate in Nepal has been reduced significantly over the past 20 years. However, the current maternal mortality ratio of 151 is more than double the SDG global target of 70 maternal deaths per 100 000 live births by 2030, it added.
According to Won Young Hong, the Representative of UNFPA in Nepal, "Globally every 2 minutes a woman dies, while in Nepal 2 women die every day due to pregnancy related complications - most of which are completely preventable. These are staggering numbers. This is why UNFPA is pleased to work with the Family Welfare Division, Ministry of Health and Population and Maternity Foundation to localize this digital application so healthcare workers across Nepal can learn on the go and provide quality maternal healthcare to all mothers and newborns".
"I'm pleased to announce the launch of the Nepali version of the Safe Delivery App in collaboration with our valued partners, the government of Nepal and UNFPA. We have been scaling up the Safe Delivery App and the accompanying programme across the world, and I'm beyond happy that we'll now also be supporting midwives and other healthcare professionals in Nepal in ensuring safer births for women and babies," says Anna Frellsen, CEO of Maternity Foundation.
The Nepali version of the App, which contains thirteen modules, has been developed in collaboration with UNFPA and Family Welfare Division, Department of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Population and other partners.
In addition to the new Nepali version, the digital tool is also available in five global versions based on WHO guidelines (English, French, Arabic, Spanish and Portuguese) and more than 30 language versions, adapted to national contexts and needs.
The Safe Delivery App is developed by Maternity Foundation in collaboration with the Universities of Copenhagen and Southern Denmark and has been scaled up globally in close collaboration with UNFPA, among other key partners.
UNFPA is the United Nations sexual and reproductive health and rights agency. It supports reproductive healthcare including safe motherhood programmes in over 150 countries and is the lead United Nations agency supporting quality midwifery care globally. Its other programmes range from family planning and contraceptive supplies to censuses and surveys, and prevention and ending of gender-based violence and harmful practices like child marriage.
Maternity Foundation started out as a smaller Danish organisation in 2005 working in western Ethiopia. Today, we have offices in Ethiopia, India, and Denmark and engagements in multiple countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, and Asia. With the recently launched Spanish Safe Delivery App version, we have started to expand our work into Latin America and the Caribbean. It works to ensure safer births for women and newborns by building midwifery knowledge and skills among healthcare professionals in low-resource areas. It uses life-saving digital health solutions and innovative learning and training programmes.
