ANALYSIS OF MATERNAL MORTALITY ISSUES IN NIGERIAN NEWSPAPERS: A STUDY OF SOUTH-WEST, NIGERIA (2019 – 2022)

Abstract
Maternal mortality (MM) remains a pressing global health concern. Despite significant global progress in healthcare over the years, it continues to affect women in low- and middle-income countries, including Nigeria where the country faces substantial challenges in reducing MM particularly in the South-West region. This study adopted a mixed method approach, combining content analysis of some national newspapers – The Punch, Guardian, and Nigerian Tribune - with interview of some stakeholders to gather nuanced perspectives on underlying causes and potential solutions to the cases of maternal mortality. Findings showed that stories on MM issues were given high-level front-page prominence at 110(55%); while editorial content and news features had the highest frequency at 64(32.0%). It was further revealed that through responsible and impactful journalism, the media can contribute to improving maternal health by advocating better communication between medical practitioners and maternity patients thus leading to better outcomes in the well-being of women and children. The study concluded that maternal mortality is an under reported issue across media landscape and advocates a synergy between medias and health practitioners to aid the reportage of more news stories featuring cases of MM as to help create awareness, inform and educate the society on the extent of the issue and how it could be tackled in the country.
Keywords
Maternal Mortality, Maternal Mortality Rate, Media Reportage, Global Health, Maternal Health