The Charta 77 foundation and Czech health authorities have recently established 12 new centers for prematurely born babies throughout the country, with the aim of decreasing what doctors call "neonatal morbidity". For the rest of us, neonatal morbidity refers to any disease or illness occurring to a baby within the fragile first 28 days of life.
The 12 new centers are situated in 9 birth clinics throughout the Czech Republic, and have been provided with state of the art medical equipment such as neonatal intensive care units or incubators.
At a press conference introducing the project, Prof. Richard Plavka, head of the Czech Society for Neonatology and head of the neonatology department at the General Faculty Hospital in Prague, pointed out that the situation in the Czech Republic has improved remarkably during the last 10 years with a strong decrease in neonatal morbidity.
Studies show that the morbidity rate in the Czech Republic has decreased the most compared to other Central European countries, and is now on the same level as in Western European countries.
The number of prematurely births is increasing in the Czech Republic, mainly due to the fact that women have children at a higher age, which increases the risk of premature delivery. This means that providing better care for prematurely born babies is a growing concern, and that the need for qualified personnel and new equipment will increase in the near future.
Photo: Charta 77 Foundation