International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Effective family planning could save the lives of many women in Malaysia, an obstetrics specialist has stated.

According to Dr Mohamad Farouk Abdullah of the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital, the country is aiming to reduce its maternal mortality rate to 11 fatalities per 100,000 live births by 2015, Malaysian newspaper the Star reports.

However, he said achieving this goal will depend partly on whether people take steps to decide precisely when they wish to have a child.

Dr Abdullah argued that by leaving a sufficient amount of time in between having their babies, women will enable their bodies to recover and thereby reduce possible health risks in the future.

He added that proper family planning could also bring down the number of miscarriages and unwanted pregnancies in Malaysia.

Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital has launched an awareness campaign in order to promote the benefits of effective family planning to local people.

Posted by Martine Ward