Suhaile - Misoprostol hotline launch in Pakistan!

The launch is being carried out by the coalition of Pakistani organizations who support women's rights Aware Girls from Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa, Peace Foundation from Sindh and Wake Up Call International from Lahore, The hotline is supported by Asia Safe Abortion Partnership, Women on Waves (Netherlands), and Women on Web.

Press inquiries:

0315-947 33 66 (Sindh)
0307-494 08 08 (Punjab)
0315-917 04 09 (Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa)
+31-6-52052561 (Women on Waves)

Women needing information in Pakistan/ hotline numbers:

0307 - 494 07 07 - (Urdu, Punjabi)
0315 - 917 04 08 - (Urdu, Pastho)
0315 - 947 33 99 - (Urdu, Sindhi)

Further information:

Pakistan has one of the highest rates of maternal deaths in Asia. Each year 30 000 women die due to pregnancy related reasons.
Nearly 90% of women deliver at home in the absence of skilled birth attendants. Only 1 in 20 women reaches the emergency obstetric care. Heavy bleeding after giving birth (PPH, postpartum hemorrhage) is the main cause of maternal deaths. 80% of maternal deaths happen during home birth.

The abortion rate in Pakistan is 14 in every 100 live births, approximately 890.000 are performed each year.

An estimated 11-15% of maternal mortality in Pakistan is caused by unsafe abortions. The taboos around abortion limit access of women to health care services resulting in unsafe abortions, which take place in unhygienic conditions and involve dangerous methods. As a result an estimated 197.000 women are hospitalized because of complications from unsafe abortions.

More than half of all maternal mortality caused by post partum hemorrhage and unsafe abortion can be prevented if women themselves have information and access to a medicine called misoprostol. Misoprostol has been on the list of essential medicines of the WHO since 2005. Misoprostol is cheap, widely available, heat resistant, and can be kept for years.

Misoprostol can easily be used by women themselves without supervision of health professionals for prevention of postpartum hemorrhage. Immediately after giving birth women should put 3 tablets of 200 mcg misoprostol under their tongue (after making sure there is not another baby inside the womb) to reduce the risk of PPH by 60%. Women can also safely and effectively use misoprostol at home by themselves to induce a miscarriage (3 doses of 4 tablets of 200 mcg under the tongue every 3 hours). This
is very safe and 85-90% effective if taken during the first 9 weeks of pregnancy. It is far safer than the unsafe surgical or traditional methods that women will use when desperately trying to end an unwanted pregnancy and has the same health impact as a spontaneous miscarriage. Usually a miscarriage is handled by women themselves without additional medical supervision. Women who do need further medical attention because of an incomplete
abortion can easily be treated by any doctor. Follow-up treatment for miscarriage and even post abortion care is legal everywhere.
Making information about the most effective regimens of misoprostol for prevention of Post partum hemorrhage and for inducing miscarriage easily available to women themselves can save women's lives.

This life saving information is protected by article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right, includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

For more information:

Asia Safe Abortion Partnership: www.asap-asia.org/
Aware girls: www.awaregirls.webs.com
Women on Waves: www.womenonwaves.org
Alan Guttmacher Institute: www.guttmacher.org/
International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics ?
statement of Prevention &Treatment of PPH:
www.figo.org/projects/prevent
World Health Organization: www.who.int
Gynuity: www.gynuity.org

Women, who need to access to safe medical abortions,
please go to www.womenonweb.org