Can the importance of midwives be measured in deaths?

The devastating consequences of maternal mortality are nowhere more evident than in Uganda, where more than 6000 mothers die as a result of childbearing every year (WHO 2010). Maternal death not only devastates the families concerned but harms future generations in terms of economic and social stability. Most of the maternal deaths in sub-Saharan Africa could be prevented by the attendance of a midwife. In Gulu, Northern Uganda, 60 per cent of women birth unattended. The facts surely speak for themselves. The world needs midwives now more than ever. Midwives have the potential to affect health on an individual and global scale and we should not underestimate the potential of the profession.