Mother-and-baby health programs launched

Minister of Health Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah launched the second phase of two public health care programs for pregnant women and babies in Riyadh on Thursday.
The programs are entitled “My Joy” and “Health Passport for Mother and Child.”
“The two programs aim to take special care of mothers and babies during pregnancy and child birth. The programs will help reduce illnesses and mortality during pregnancy and childbirth, see the quick diagnosis of diseases and ensure the health of mother and child,” Al-Rabeeah said in a statement.
The minister said the programs would be implemented at all hospitals and primary healthcare centers across the Kingdom.
The two programs will cover 350,000 mothers and babies initially and eventually reach 600,000 when implemented in all regions.
The “Health Passport Program” involves the preparation of a total health record of a mother and her baby during pregnancy including all their diseases, treatment and medication. The entries have to be made by those who treat them both at private and government hospitals. This will help to identify the best treatment for them.
The “My Joy” program aims to increase the awareness of mothers about baby nutrition beginning from breast feeding, ways to enhance a baby’s immunity, training a baby to develop healthy eating habits, and showing the appropriate time for vaccinations against various diseases.
The launch of the second phase is part of the Health Ministry’s efforts to achieve its comprehensive social vision of health for all. “With the launch of the program, the ministry seeks to monitor the health of mother and baby from the early stage of pregnancy to childbirth and during the child’s first five years,” spokesman of the ministry Khaled Al-Mirghalani said.
The ministry launched the program’s first phase last year with extensive training programs for health workers in both government and private sectors, he said.
During the function the minister also gave out awards to the content team of the ministry’ web portal, which is ranked the number government website. The ranking was achieved during the evaluation of the United Nation’s grading of government departments, in preparation for e-governance in 2014, Al-Mirghalani said.