This year Quinnipiac Women’s Ice Hockey has joined Teaming Up to raise awareness and advocacy for improving maternal health in the developing world. We have joined this project after learning about the threatening conditions that mothers face during pregnancy around the world and realizing that meeting the goals of maternal health requires a global effort.
The greatest challenges to maternal health are faced by women in the developing world. Every minute of every day, one woman dies during childbirth. Nearly 600,000 women die each year from pregnancy related complications, and 99% of these deaths occur in developing countries. Improving maternal health is not just a health concern; it is a human rights concern. Every woman deserves the opportunity to have a safe and healthy pregnancy and this is possible with education and access to proper care.
In the year 2000, the United States and the United Nations pledged to reduce maternal mortality by 75% by the year 2015. Today, we are half-way to that deadline and progress has been far from sufficient. We hope that through our participation in this project, we will become part of the solution by increasing awareness and support in our own country.
Furthermore, in honor and support of women around the world, we are determined to raise $6000 to fund the implementation of a grass roots project (UbuMama) and educational workshops in Bangladesh where a woman’s risk of dying in childbirth is 1 in 59. We hope that you will take the time to read more about maternal health and the UbuMama project, so that you can join us in raising awareness and encouraging and empowering women across the world.
