A new journal supplement, “Born Too Soon: progress, priorities and pivots for preterm birth,” led by PMNCH, has been published in BMC Reproductive Health. This vital publication, comprising ten papers (seven articles and three commentaries), adapts and expands the content from the 2023 WHO report “Born Too Soon: A Decade of Action on Preterm Birth.” It makes crucial findings accessible to the wider health and research community, with authors updating data, including recent literature, and integrating new policy developments related to preterm birth and integrated maternal and newborn care.
Across the seven articles, authors highlight the progress made in the last decade, outline the need for improved data to enhance programs, and emphasize the necessity for comprehensive, high-quality, and respectful sexual, reproductive, and maternal health services to improve outcomes. They also underscore the importance of investing in small and sick newborn care to ensure equitable access, particularly in conflict areas and among marginalized populations.
For the first time, this supplement also focuses on human rights law and global health processes and their role in upholding the rights of women, babies, parents, families, and healthcare providers. It emphasizes the positive impact of intersectoral action to reduce the burden of preterm birth and improve the health of mothers, babies, and families.
The supplement features three commentaries, including a high-level political commentary by Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, WHO; Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director, UNFPA; Ms. Catherine Russell, Executive Director, UNICEF; and Rt Hon Helen Clark, Board Chair, PMNCH.
A feat of collaboration and partnership, the supplement features contributions from 95 authors across 67 organizations, representing 29 countries, including 19 low- and middle-Income countries (LMICs).
History of Born Too Soon
“Born Too Soon” was originally created in 2012 to provide evidence for action, strengthening the movement to accelerate action on preterm birth, and maternal and newborn health more broadly. A decade on, 70 organizations came together to develop an updated “Born Too Soon” report, asking: what has changed in the last decade, and what has not? How can we pivot to move faster in the next decade?
Preterm birth remains a silent crisis, claiming the lives of vulnerable newborns daily. Globally, a baby is born preterm every two seconds, and every 40 seconds a preterm newborn dies. This makes preterm birth the leading cause of under-five deaths, accounting for approximately 1 million newborn deaths annually.
For the past decade, progress on preterm birth has alarmingly stagnated. This lack of advancement is directly linked to broader challenges in maternal and newborn survival and the prevention of stillbirths. The starkest illustration of this crisis is the unacceptable equity gap: in high-income countries, 9 out of 10 preterm babies survive, while in low-income countries, 9 out of 10 die.
Born Too Soon Supplement Launch Webinar
On June 24, 2024, to mark the publication of the supplement, PMNCH, supported by key partners LSHTM, FIGO, EWENE, and the University of Western Cape School of Public Health (SOPH), held a global launch webinar. With over 350 attendees, this interactive event introduced and highlighted the supplement’s key content to researchers and policymakers, featuring powerful family stories and lived experiences that brought a human element to the discussion.
During the event, country representatives offered compelling insights into national prioritization of newborn and maternal health. Dr. Richard Mugahi from the Ministry of Health Uganda, for example, highlighted his country’s impressive reduction in neonatal mortality rates over the past decade—the second fastest in the African region. The event also recognized progress in Tanzania, as a member of the Global Leaders Network for women’s, children’s, and adolescents’ health and the leadership of the President of Tanzania, H.E. Samia Suluhu Hassan, a strong advocate for investing in small and sick newborn care.
As Tanzania’s president Samia Suluhu Hassan is quoted in the supplement, “We have built hospitals, health centres, and dispensaries; now our task is to strengthen what we have built and train staff to provide quality services to Tanzanians.”
The Born Too Soon Supplement and its launch are a testament to the power of partnership. It marks a significant moment within a wider movement on preterm birth. The need to carry the messages to invest in preterm birth and maternal and neonatal care remains critically important.
“From high-level policymakers to grassroots civil society movements – we’ve seen how change can happen and the impact we can make when we work together,” said Rajat Khosla, PMNCH Executive Director in closing the event. “Now we just need to make sure the decade ahead is better than the decade behind us.”
Read the Born Too Soon Supplement here
Find out more about the Born Too Soon Movement here
