Help us reduce maternal deaths


Our mission: To increase access and quality of reproductive healthcare globally through research, development, and implementation of innovative solutions.


Project Background

Ghana, like most of its neighbors, has been urbanizing at a rapid rate. The so-called “urban health advantage”, or assumption that people in urban areas are less vulnerable to morbidity and mortality, is being increasingly questioned and emerging studies have shown that urban areas often have a disadvantage in terms of maternal mortality. There is an urgent and significant unmet need for developing innovative strategies for reducing maternal mortality in such unprecedented settings--high patient volumes and decades shortage of nurses, midwives, and physicians.
  • 4.1% urban population growth rate in sub-Saharan Africa vs 0.8% in high income countries
  • 1.1 nurses or midwives per 1,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa vs 8.6 in high-income countries
  • 0.2 physicians per 1,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa vs 3.0 in high-income countries
These and complex other factors result in a high maternal mortality rate that is roughly 20-80X the rate of high-income countries--547 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in sub-Saharan Africa vs 13 in high-income countries.

Armed with data and a world-class multi-disciplinary team of researchers, physicians, nurses, and engineers, GIRHL is at the forefront of developing the innovative solutions needed to help end this epidemic.



Our Focus: Preventing the preventable

The significant challenge that's emerged throughout hospitals in sub-Saharan Africa is maximizing detection of at-risk patients to ensure that women receive the care they need once they have arrived at medical facilities. Through collaboration with KBTH, we are developing innovative, data-driven strategies that can reduce the rates of maternal mortality in resource-limited, often understaffed, settings.

In July 2018, we began the most comprehensive maternal mortality audit in Ghana to date. Our team is collecting data, performing detailed reviews, and examining each maternal death that occurred between 2012-2017. We will use this data to develop a "calculator" that can be used at the point-of-care to predict which women are at highest risk of death upon admission. In addition to identifying specific changes that may be implemented immediately, we will use the data to inform a longer-term strategy aimed at reducing the maternal mortality ratio to at least 140 per 100,000 live-births by 2030, a target set forth by the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The study is expected to be completed by 2020.



How you can help

Donations will lay the foundation for much needed solutions that will save women’s lives and ensure a healthy start for growing families. Your donation will go directly towards:
  • Completion of data extraction and cleaning
  • Statistical analyses, modeling
  • Gathering input from key stakeholders
    • i.e. focus groups with nurses, residents & attending physicians for quality improvement strategies
  • Dissemination of results in open source publications
  • Seed funding for implementation of data-driven quality improvement interventions, including innovative engineering solutions, and process and policy recommendations.
Donors who donate $100 or more will receive a one of a kind painting of their choice (see gallery below). These paintings are crafted by local artists in Ghana, and will be reserved on a first-come-first-serve basis.