"The Design of a Radio Program Focused on the Maternal Health Education of Women in South Africa"
According to the World Health Organization, more than one woman dies every minute from complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Less than one percent of these deaths occur in developed countries. In South Africa, the maternal mortality rate continues to increase, despite global efforts to prevent this rate from skyrocketing. USAID estimates between 1,600 and 3,700 women and girls die each year due to
Pregnancy-related complications. Not only do women die from birth and pregnancy complications, but the ones who do survive often suffer from life-long disabilities (about 32,000 to 111,000 South African women and girls).
Proper communication is essential in battling major public health problems such as the high rate of maternal mortality. Mass media campaigns have been studied to be very successful in dispensing important information that could change people's decisions concerning their health. At the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, researchers used radio and television to see how effective mass media interventions were in increasing the knowledge of HIV transmission and condom use. In the present study, I developed a radio show focused on educating women about reproductive and maternal health, especially contraception usage and family planning in South Africa. In order to have an effective radio program, I involved the community members that listen to the radio in the development of the program. I asked what the listeners wanted from the show and then design a new women's health program from their answers. After the airing of the first show, I followed up with a second survey to allow for feedback on the new show. The purpose of the show was to empower women in Venda, South Africa, in Limpopo Province to make better decisions concerning their maternal and reproductive health and create a forum for discussion among the women in the community. This kind of participatory media campaign could perhaps lead to more educational content in the media regarding maternal and family health that could help alleviate the increasing maternal mortality rate in South Africa.