Background facts

Every day 1500 women die from pregnancy-related or childbirth-related conditions in the world. Most deaths occur in developing countries and are avoidable. Worldwide, 13 developing countries account for 70% of all maternal deaths. A woman living in sub-Saharan Africa has a 1 in 16 chance of dying in pregnancy or childbirth. This compares with a 1 in 2800 risk for a woman from a developed region.

The World Health Organization estimates that more than 80% of maternal deaths could be prevented through actions that have been proven to be effective and affordable, including: access to voluntary family planning to ensure that births are spaced properly, skilled attendance at delivery, aseptic birth environments, identification of maternal/fetal/neonatal complications, and minimal delay in reaching a medical facility or in receiving good quality/emergency obstetric care.

In Australia, in the triennium 2003–05, there were 65 maternal deaths (29 direct and 36 indirect) and 34 incidental deaths (see Table 43.1). There were no deaths from termination of pregnancy procedures. Over the past five trienniums, the maternal mortality rates for Indigenous women were between two and five times the maternal mortality rates for non-Indigenous women.

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