Healthcare Provision for Women Has Many Gaps

As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, the service gaps in health provision for Mexican women take the spotlight.

Here is the week in health!

One in Three Mexican Women Face Obstetric Violence

An estimated 33.4 percent of Mexican women have suffered mistreatment during childbirth, according to INEGI's 2016 National Survey of Household Relations (ENDIREH). After childbirth, 9.2 percent of patients were pressured to accept a contraceptive method and 4.2 percent had one placed or were even permanently sterilized without consent. The COVID-19 pandemic further worsened childbirth practices worldwide, increasing unnecessary restrictions and interventions during labor.

Underrepresentation in Healthcare Calls for a Feminist Approach

Despite representing 71 percent of the health workforce, women continue to be underrepresented in leadership positions, limiting their influence and hampering diversity and gender equity goals. “Women are disadvantaged structurally, being overrepresented in informal care roles and underrepresented in leadership, decision making and senior research roles, resulting on programs that are often blind to the differences between women’s needs and men’s needs,” according to The Lancet.

Ministry of Health Aims to Reduce Maternal, Perinatal Death

The National Center of Gender Equality and Health Reproduction (CNEGSR) published guidelines to unify procedures in labor-recovery rooms. This initiative aligns with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and aims to reduce maternal and perinatal death. Mexico is expected to reduce its 2010 maternal mortality rate of 46 per 100,000 live births by at least two thirds. In the country, maternal death affects mainly those living in the poorest regions and most of those affected belong to indigenous communities.

IMSS, UNICEF-Mexico Work to Prevent Malnutrition

The Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) and the UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) signed a memorandum of understanding to assist children, teenagers and pregnant women in the fight against malnutrition. Early diagnosis and treatment are the plan’s core strategies. Just one year into the pandemic, 13.8 million more people suffered from hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean. According to UNICEF, in Mexico, one in eight children under five years old suffers from chronic malnutrition, which mainly affects southern states, such as Yucatan and Chiapas.

Patria Vaccine Could be Ready in 2023

The Mexican COVID-19 vaccine “Patria,” which is currently awaiting approval for Phase III clinical trials, could be incorporated in the country’s vaccination campaign and be distributed for additional “booster” shots as early as next year, said Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell.

Public Institutions Fail to Fill 24 million Prescriptions

Medicine shortages that began in 2019 worsened during 2021, with 24 million prescriptions being left unfilled at public health institutions, found a report by Cero Desabasto. This is the worst supply shortage that Mexico has seen during President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration.

Ukraine Invasion Could Delay Sputnik Approval

Despite being the first vaccine in the world to be authorized, the WHO and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have withheld approval of the Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine and several countries still do not use it. The vaccine’s approval could be further delayed by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

New Health Intelligence Center Will Address Sanitary Crises

The Center on Survey and Evaluation Research (CIEES) of the National Institute of Public Health (INSP) will merge some of their capabilities into the National Center in Health Intelligence (CNIS). The new center will optimize resources to address future sanitary crises through the collection of data regarding health services, resources and population needs.

Experts of the Week!

Be sure to check our expert contributors and view from the tops from:

• Gilda D’Incerti, CEO, PQE Group
• Ramón Mier, Commercial Director, Vitalmex
• Agustin Zabulanes, Country Director, Boston Scientific de Mexico

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