Kampala, Uganda | URN | Sixteen-year-old Loyce, a former secondary student in Mayuge district conceived during the lockdown last year. Scared and confused, Loyce decided to perform an abortion. Unfortunately, she developed sepsis and passed away seven days later. Her sister Mary Nabirye says that there was little they could do to save her life.

“She did not tell anyone what was happening. She kept quiet until it was too late. We found out she was sick after she developed a high temperature. She could not walk. She was sweating and shivering and was taken to hospital,” Nabirye narrates.

According to Nabirye, they went to Iganga General Hospital where doctors told them that she was suffering from a bacterial infection as a result of an abortion and not malaria as they had initially suspected. She passed on a day later after admission, according to Nabirye.

Four out of every 10 maternal deaths recorded in the country are of teenagers who succumb to abortion-related complications, according to the National Annual Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response Report of 2019/2020 compiled by the health ministry.

Maternal death or mortality is defined by the World Health Organisation as the death of any woman during pregnancy or within 42 days of terminating a pregnancy. The report shows that 61 cases per 100,000 maternal deaths were among expectant mothers aged between 10 and 19 years of age. The highest number of deaths was reported at regional referral hospitals followed by general hospitals.

Dr. Richard Mugahi, the Assistant Commissioner of Infant and Maternal Child Health in Ministry of Health, says that the highest numbers of deaths result from abortion complications in this age group. Read more via Dispatch