Teenage pregnancy on a decline in Gauteng

The campaign against teenage pregnancy, launched by Gauteng MEC for Health and Social Development Ntombi Mekgwe, seems to be having a deterrent effect on young people who have babies prematurely.

According to a report tabled by the department before the Gender Youth and Disability committee in the provincial legislature, there was a slight decrease in the number of babies born from teenage mothers in the province in the 2010/11 financial year compared to the previous year. Teenage mothers were responsible for 5.6% of babies born in the province in 2010/11 compared to 5.8% in the 2009/10.

“The fact that there was no increase and that there was a slight decrease indicates that the message is getting through and teenage pregnancies are stabilising. However more work still needs to be done to accelerate the decline in teenage pregnancy and improve the status of women in the province,” MEC Mekgwe said.

Another notable improvement is that the proportion of women booking antenatal care visits before 20 weeks of pregnancy increased from 27.3% in the first quarter 2010/11 to 30.7% the first quarter of this financial year.

Last year, the department began implement new protocols for the management of HIV in pregnancy. According to this protocol all pregnant women who test HIV positive with a CD4 count of 350 are put on anti-retroviral therapy. Infants less than one year who are HIV positive now receive antiretroviral treatment (ART) irrespective of their CD4 count.  

Babies of HIV-positive mothers are tested for HIV at six weeks and immediately placed on ART if the result is positive.

Meanwhile neonatal wards have been upgraded at Charlotte Maxeke, Dr George Mukhari and Natalspruit hospitals to incorporate intensive care unit.

At Charlotte Maxeke hospital the ward for premature babies was repainted, the nurses stations refurbished and new lamps and lockers installed. The number of staff increased from 44 to 60 and retired nurses are helping to improve the infection control. A new ward with 20 beds and 24 staff was renovated to become a high care area for newborn babies at the same hospital.

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