Preventable Neonatal Mortality in India: A Verbal Autopsy

R.S. Goyal, Indian Institute of Health Management (IIHMR)

This paper discusses the findings of verbal autopsies of 348 neonatal mortality cases. The analysis is based on neonatal deaths occurring among 14,655 children born during the year 2007 in 700 villages from 7 relatively less developed districts of Uttar Pradesh (India) and assesses their preventable socio-economic, cultural and program correlates. The study groups major correlates of neonatal mortality in to five broad categories. •Those related to low awareness for danger signs of pregnancy, inadequate antenatal care and poor management of high risk pregnancies (18 to 20 percent deaths). •Those related to low awareness for danger signs during labour and delivery and their poor management (18 to 20 percent deaths). •Those related to poor management of neonate’s danger signs and sicknesses including access to treatment (40 percent deaths). •Combination of two or more of above categories (15 percent death). •Congenital malformation etc. (5 percent deaths).