Article ID: HRP2018-007
Maternal mortality rates in Japan declined steadily until around 2007, after which they plateaued, with current numbers residing at 2.7–4.8/100,000 total births. A more accurate grasp on the number of maternal deaths and suicide cases among pregnant women and those within 1 year postpartum is needed. These data must be analyzed in order to provide countermeasures and knowledge on emergency life-saving measures. To this end, the entire medical team should attend training so that the various problems may be resolved among multidisciplinary professionals and better treatment and management may be provided, facilitating a proper response to any situation. Establishing cooperative relationships with higher level medical institutions to which patients may need to be transferred is also important. Sharing case histories and courses in regular case conferences and debriefing sessions would also be beneficial.