The Ministry of Health and Wellness has launched Start Right, a maternal care initiative set to provide supplies for vulnerable mothers and their newborns as well as improve maternal healthcare.

Start Right was launched today (January 16). The initiative is a partnership among the Ministry of Health, JAHJAH Foundation and the American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ).

“Through our public-private partnerships, we’re committed to improving the quality and standards of health care facilities across the island to better serve maternal and childcare needs,” stated the ministry in a post on Twitter.

According to the AFJ, 100 snuggle nests -portable lounge chairs for newborns will be handed out to teen mothers in Jamaica. They will also receive supplies such as wipes, diapers, soap and other necessities.

Start Right will also see the island benefitting from revolutionary technology that will help with screening, prenatal testing and other diagnostics.

Through this partnership, Jamaica will receive 24 Butterfly Handheld ultrasound monitors that will be distributed to Obstetrics Units across the country.

In his remarks Dr Garfield Clunis, maternal-fetal medicine subspecialist noted that the monitors have the ability to diagnose maternal hemorrhaging, one of the main causes of death among mothers.

Information obtained from the delegation of the European Union to Jamaica in 2020 indicates that Jamaica’s maternal mortality ratio stood at 89 per 100,000 live births, an increase from previous years.

The monitors are said to also improve operations at Accident and Emergency Departments.

Dr Christopher Tufton, minister of health said that the government is determined to improve healthcare sectors on the island and Start Right will provide the best outcome for vulnerable mothers.