Improving Maternal And Child Health, The Fifth Goal Of The Millennium Development Goals

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Recommended: Accomplishment of Millennium development goals

Improving maternal and child health (MCH) was the fifth goal of the Millennium Development Goals established by the United Nations. MCH is important because women and children are generally more susceptible to diseases, and is a key indicator of the overall wellbeing within a society (lecture 2). This MDG goal was targeted to achieve by 2015. Although progress had been made in increasing availability and providing affordable healthcare services in many countries, the majority of women and children still have limited access to this care in the Sub-Sahara Africa region, specifically in Liberia. With a total population of 5 million, only 20% of the population in Liberia has access to adequate sanitation and clean environment; approximately 80% …show more content…

LifeLine Community Healthcare Program provided loans for Ruth and Tage to expand their clinic and promote health services. The main objectives of this program were to teach people ways to prevent diseases, to maintain a health diet and good hygiene, to treat common diseases, and to assist women in starting a small business to support their children for education. Families with extremely low income were able to get reduced charge for health services. This ensured that women and children have adequate access to healthcare, which is an important aspect of empowering the next generation. Partnering with LifeLine Network had provided Ruth and her family with great resources in reducing maternal and child health in the community and taking a step closer to achieve the fifth Millennium Development Goal. Although this program has significantly reduced maternal and child mortality, further developments and solutions are needed in order to promote good health for the overall society and improve socioeconomic status of

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