THE MATERNAL CHILD HEALTH IN ISIOLO

The Maternal child health (MCH) Program envisions a nation where all mothers, children and youth, including children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN), and their families are healthy and thriving. The mission of  Maternal Child Healtg is to improve the health and well-being of the nation’s mothers, infants, children, and youth, including children and youth with special health care needs, and their families.

Isiolo County has a population of just over 143,000 people. Almost about half of the population is aged below 15, 16% are aged under 5 and 24% are aged 10-19. Isiolo County’s total fertility rate (4.9) is higher than the national rate of 3.9 and also means that Isiolo County has a high birth rate.

The adolescent birth rate is also high – more than 1 in every 10 girls aged 15-19 gives birth every year. Isiolo County is one of 15 Counties that account for over 60% of maternal deaths in Kenya. The latest estimate of the County’s maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is 790 deaths per 100,000 live births.

Child death rates in Isiolo County mirror the national trend although the neonatal death rate is slightly higher and infant and under five death rates are slightly lower. High maternal and child death rates are linked to high birth rates and limited access to life saving maternal and child health interventions.

This fact sheet highlights the status of key reproductive, maternal and child health interventions in Isiolo County, in relation to the national status. The data are drawn from the 2009 and 2014 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, the Kenya AIDS Indicator Survey (KAIS, 2007), the United Nation (UN) and other national and global studies.