My opinion
 

By Mr. Mohamed Najimudeen
Corresponding Author Mr. Mohamed Najimudeen
Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Melaka Manipal Medical College, - Malaysia 75150
Submitting Author Mr. Mohamed M Najimudeen
OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY

Discarding newborn babies

Najimudeen M. Discarding the Newborn Babies in Malaysia. WebmedCentral OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY 2010;1(9):WMC00700
doi: 10.9754/journal.wmc.2010.00700
No
Submitted on: 21 Sep 2010 01:16:26 PM GMT
Published on: 21 Sep 2010 04:43:42 PM GMT

My opinion


Discarding the newborn babies had continued to escalate in Malaysia. A newborn baby was thrown into the dustbin at the Melaka General Hospital and was found dead on 18.08.2010. A ten month old baby was killed in dumped in the bus stand last week. The Social Welfare Department had recovered 315 discarded babies between the years of 2001 to 2005. The Police department reports an average 100 babies are thrown out annually.  Malaysia is a country with rich cultural heritage and dignity. What went wrong? Where is the problem? Is there a solution for this scourge?

The sexual relationship at very early teenage had not only increased in Malaysia but all over the world. For example in the United States 14,790 teenage girls under the age of 15 years became pregnant in the year 2006. Out of this 6,490 girls underwent termination of pregnancy (abortion).

United Kingdom had reported 17,626 pregnancies among the girls under15 years of age from 2000 to 2007.  In other words six pregnancies every day. There were 268 pregnancies in the girls of 12 years old, 2,527 of 13 years olds, 14,777 of 14 year-olds and 45,861 of 15 year-olds school girls

Proper care of teenagers, education on fertility, awareness of contraception, termination of unwanted pregnancy and legalizing the teenage marriages can minimize the unwanted teenage pregnancies

Teenagers had grown beyond the supervision of parents and elders. It is responsibility of the parents, teachers and supervisors to guide the innocent tender teenagers in the correct pathways. The religious, moral and cultural values are fading among the youngsters. .Pornographic and other materials are very freely available. Haphazard use of mobile phones had increased their vulnerability. Night food outlets are another nightmare in this country. The youngsters spend time until late night and their whereabouts are unknowns. Can we reduce this culture?

Fertility education is a must for teenagers.  . Most of these young girls were not aware that they had become pregnant. They believed that the period was simply delayed until they became full term pregnant. They never believed that one or two sexual exposures can make them pregnant. They also imagined that proper penetration is necessary to become pregnant. I have seen many pregnant mothers with intact hymen.

 Educating the teenagers about fertility is a must to prevent teenage pregnancies. This could be introduced in the school curriculum. A careful syllabus should be prepared by experts in this field.

Contraceptive advice is important to prevent teenage pregnancy. Many teenagers engage in all forms of sexual activities without using contraceptives.  There not aware the availability and benefits of contraception. They shy to buy from pharmacies. They are not aware of proper use of condoms and forgetful to take the pills daily. Stable teenage partners must be advised on long term contraceptives such as implants.

Termination of pregnancy should be legalized to some extent. I have seen innocent girls are made pregnant by very close relatives, driver uncles and often domestics. Many gang rapes had been reported when a girl was lonely at home or one the road.  These unfortunate girls were no way responsible for those sad events.  They must be protected and given a new life

According to Penal Cod 312 (Amendment Act 1989 in Malaysia) abortion is permitted   to protect her physical health, mental health and to save a mother’s life. We make use of this opportunity to safeguard our innocent victims.

There were very high incidence of teenage pregnancies and abortions in Scandinavian countries many years back.  The proper use of contraceptive methods and safe methods of abortions had drastically reduced the incidence of teenage pregnancies.

The Malacca state government is keen to legalize the age of marriage to 16 in girls and 18 in boys. It is a very good move and I personally congratulate the state for their brave decision.  I am looking after the teenage mothers  for more than 20 years and I know their grievances.  They cannot register their marriage. The birth cannot be registered without marriage certificate. The benefit of children cannot be enjoyed.  The child without marriage is not very much acceptable. I fully endorse the statement of the chief minister of Malacca, Mohammad Ali Rustam, since this was intended to address social problems. For the state government, this is the best step to deal with the problem of abandoned babies and unwed pregnancies.

You may be astonished to learn that 257,411 babies are born without the name of father between 2000 to 2008 in Malaysia. The birth certificates of these children do not have their father’s names.  In other words 78 babies are born daily out of wedlock.  Can’t we register these marriages and help these newborn babies?

The Government of Malaysia had allocated RM 13.7 billion to the health budget for the year 2009. The health authorities make use of this great opportunity to help our innocent teenagers by way of fertility education, contraceptive advise and termination of unwanted pregnancies.

Conclusion(s)


Proper care of teenagers, education on fertility, awareness of contraception, termination of unwanted pregnancy and legalizing the teenage marriages can minimize the unwanted teenage pregnancies

Source(s) of Funding


No funding

Competing Interests


No competing interests

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Discarding the Newborn Babies in Malaysia
Posted by Dr. Ogunlesi TA on 11 Apr 2011 01:27:42 PM GMT

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