Contagious Pustular Dermatitis (Orf Disease) - Epidemiology, Diagnosis, Control and Public Health Concerns

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Maternal Mortality and Infant Mortality Reduction has been a goal of several International and National Welfare programmes for more than 2 decades now. Most of the maternal and neonatal morbidities are avoidable by applying very basic principles to our day to day practice and by revisiting the basic practices. Revitalization of partograph is one of them, which in spite of being very helpful to avoid the maternal and neonatal complications related with prolonged and obstructed labour; not being utilized properly. OBSERVATIONS: WHO has long back labeled Partograph as an essential tool to prevent maternal and neonatal complications, still its use does not seem to be worldwide. By reviewing the literature it has been observed that main hindrance in the use of this useful tool is related with the management and administration issues including logistic problems, shortage of staff, training and supervision inadequacy and inadequate attention being given to its inclusion as an essential labour monitoring tool starting from the learning periods of Nurses and Doctors. CONCLUSION: Partograph use needs to be encouraged more in countries like India where we wish to utilize peripheral staff and non obstetricians as a workforce for management of pregnant females. As we do not have effective peripheral level emergency obstetrics services, it is very crucial that every labouring woman should be referred at proper time in order to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes which can only be achieved by proper monitoring of labour by using a simple tool like Partograph. According to Registrar General Of India, the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) of the United Nations has set the target of achieving 200 maternal deaths per lakh of live births by 2007 and 109 per lakh of live births by 2015 (1). For 2008, there were an estimated 358, 000 maternal deaths in the world, or a maternal mortality ratio (MMR) of 260 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births (2). Of the estimated total of 358,000 maternal deaths worldwide, developing countries accounted for 99% (355,000). Nearly three fifths of the maternal deaths (204,000) occurred in the sub-Saharan Africa region alone, followed by South Asia (109,000). Thus, sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia accounted for 87% (313,000) of global maternal deaths. By country, India had the largest number of maternal