Egypt’s Minister of Health and Population Hala Zayed announced, on Monday, that 1.1 million women were medically examined as part of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s “100 Million Health” initiative to detect diseases transmitted from mother to fetuses.
Treatment and healthcare have been provided free of charge under the initiative, launched in March 2020.
Zayed affirmed commitment to the required preventive and precautionary measures, in light of the state’s response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
The initiative aims to early detect infection with B virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and syphilis among pregnant women, in addition to reducing maternal deaths caused by these diseases.
Additionally, the initiative also includes follow-up on the condition of the mother and newborn for 42 days after the termination of pregnancy in order to discover all risk factors for the mother or the newborn, and to take appropriate measures in addition to dispensing the necessary micronutrients during the postpartum period.
Moreover, the initiative’s services are provided in all health units and medical centres, nationwide and there are 90 designated centers for the referral of B virus and HIV cases, in addition to 163 centres to refer syphilis patients nationwide.
More than 4,000 medical teams are participating in the initiative, who have been trained on how to use devices for early detection of B virus, HIV and syphilis for pregnant women.
