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The myopia of governments contributes to maternal mortality: dying from socioeconomic and physical distances

¹ Network of Research in Gender and Health, Health Institute Carlos III, Ministry of Health, Madrid, Spain
² Preventive Medicine and Public Health Area, University of Alicante, Alicante city, Spain
³ Observatory of Public Politics and Health, University of El Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador
⁴ Medical School, University of El Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr M Teresa Ruiz Cantero
Preventive Medicine and Public Health Area, University of Alicante, Campus San Vicente del Raspeig, Ap. 99 C.p 03080, San Vicente del Raspeig (Alicante), Spain; cantero@ua.es

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Most of the ministries of health in developing countries have declared that they intend to do everything in their power to reduce the high rates of maternal death. However, the lack of efficient public policies aimed at correcting this problem is undermining their intention. Maternal deaths are a bad visible indicator of a country’s development. The Millennium Development Goal number 5 aims to reduce maternal mortality by 75% between 1990 and 2015. To do so, its priority is to improve public hospital healthcare by qualifying the professionals that work there. Although this is undoubtedly a priority, equally important is trying to work out why up to 50% of birth deliveries do not take place in healthcare centres (especially in rural areas).

The physical distance between villages and healthcare centres can be used as a metaphor for other existing distances, such as the economic and cultural ones. Despite the . . . [Full text of this article]

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