Romania’s Neonatal Mortality Rate 2-3 Times Higher Than EU Average – NGO

Data released in 2008 indicates that Romania tops the EU’s infant mortality ranking with a 13 ‰ death rate for children under the age of one, compared to the EU’s 5.72‰, and a 15 ‰ in the under-5 category, compared to Sweden’s 3‰. Romania’s infant mortality rate for 2009 was 10,1‰, according to statistics issued by the Health Ministry.

The categories most affected by under-5 mortality are children from areas with poor infrastructure, healthcare and phone service, children born underweight or with hereditary anomalies, and children of unwed, poorly educated, or very young mothers.

Most children who die within 24 hours of being admitted into hospital are girls of Roma ethnicity, as „ethnic Romas usually display all the other determining factors (poverty, low education level, etc.)”, says the NGO’s press release.

Children’s deaths are either directly caused by diseases, or indirectly determined by Romania’s deficient healthcare system, a lack of proper hygiene and nutrition, early pregnancies, a lack of information on contraception, poverty or discrimination.

In 2008, most under-5 deaths were caused by hereditary anomalies or perinatal afflictions, some of which can be detected as early as the first quarter of the pregnancy, or by respiratory illnesses, considered easy to cure in developed countries. Approximately 10% of deaths of children under five were accidental, and most of them could have been prevented by educating the mothers on childcare and child-rearing, says „Save the Children”.

The NGO also warned against the flaws of the Romanian healthcare system, such as the low number of hospitals in rural areas, the lack of equipment, extra healthcare costs to be covered by parents, inaccessible and insufficient family planning services and discrimination.

„Save the Children” will launch the Every One campaign against infant mortality, which aims to educate mothers on the importance of regular checkups and the specifics of caring for a child aged below five. The campaign also seeks to engage Romanian authorities in an effort against infant mortality. The campaign will be launched in twelve poor, Roma-inhabited villages in southern Dambovita county, western Vrancea county and eastern Caras-Severin county.