Maternal Heath Channel

The television series follows the lives of women and their families across the country, from the relatively prosperous urban south to remote villages and the economically impoverished savannah region in the north. Each of the 30-minute episodes includes documentaries from a roving reporting crew, studio discussions filmed on set in Accra, news bulletins, and special reports. The series brings together economists, health professionals, and policy makers to discuss the broader implications for Ghana's development resulting from high maternal mortality rates and poor reproductive health care. The series, which is expected to reach 8-10 million viewers per week, will air every Thursday.

Thirty audio versions of the television programmes are also being produced for radio discussions across the country in local languages, in an attempt to reach communities that don't have access to TV. The documentaries tell real-life stories that highlight why so many women die in childbirth, what is wrong with the health services, the effect of the rural/urban divide, cultural impediments to progress, and family planning.

An inspiration for the Maternal Health Channel Television Series was the critical success of the documentary film, The Lights Have Gone Out Again, an investigation into the high incidence of maternal deaths, including those due to hypertensive disorders and post-partum haemorrhage, in Ghana. To build on the interest generated and tostudy the issues further, some of the programmes will revisit places and people featured in the film in order to provide updates on the state of maternal health care services throughout Ghana. Click here to watch Maternal Health Channel Television Series videos on Vimeo.

Maternal health

According to Creative Storm Networks, up to 4,000 women and girls still die in childbirth or from pregnancy-related complications each year, while as many as 117,000 experience long-term disabilities. In maternal health, the most common cause of death is bleeding. This initiative is designed to help raise awareness about the importance of reducing the high incidence of maternal mortality in Ghana and improving the reproductive health statutes of Ghanaian women. Ghana will almost certainly miss its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of reducing maternal deaths by 75%, from 560 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2003 to 185 in 2015. The predicted figure is 340.

Click here to view a video about the series from The Guardian.