KATHMANDU: The government provided free air rescue services to 103 pregnant and postpartum women under the President Women Upliftment Programme during the last fiscal year.
The Ministry of Women, Children, Gender and Sexual Minorities, and Social Security said the rescues were carried out by the Nepal Army for pregnant and postpartum women in life-threatening conditions from remote areas.
The ministry has implemented the Air Rescue Procedure, 2020 to facilitate emergency evacuations for women facing serious pregnancy- and childbirth-related complications.
Under the procedure, women eligible for air rescue include those experiencing prolonged labor lasting more than 18 hours, obstructed delivery due to abnormal fetal presentation, failure to deliver the placenta within 30 minutes after childbirth, stillbirth, severe swelling during pregnancy associated with complications, excessive bleeding before or after delivery, uterine rupture, and suspected ectopic pregnancy, among other life-threatening obstetric emergencies.
The initiative aims to improve access to emergency maternal healthcare for women living in remote and geographically difficult areas where timely medical services are often unavailable.
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