Mortalidade materna no Rio Grande do Norte: análise das condições sociodemográficas e da assistência pré- natal em 2022.

Abstract

Maternal mortality reflects socioeconomic conditions, access to health, barriers faced and structural inequities, also evidencing violations of women's human, sexual and reproductive rights. It constitutes a global goal of the United Nations (UN) in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in which the maternal mortality rate must be reduced. Objective: To analyze maternal mortality indicators and their relationships with sociodemographic conditions and prenatal care in the municipalities of the state of Rio Grande do Norte. Methodology: This is an ecological, descriptive and analytical study, with a quantitative approach, using data from DATASUS for the year 2022. All 167 municipalities of the state of Rio Grande do Norte were included, considering only those that registered cases of maternal death in the year 2022. Results: Most of the women who died were black or brown, with low education and single. The deaths, mostly in hospitals, resulted from direct obstetric causes. There was a higher mortality rate among pregnant women with only 1 to 3 prenatal care visits, while mortality was lower in cases of at least six consultations, greater per capita investment in the SUS and greater involvement of Community Health Agents. Final considerations: The study revealed socioeconomic, gender and racial inequalities that increase the vulnerability of women in the pregnancy-puerperal cycle in Rio Grande do Norte, highlighting the need to strengthen Primary Health Care (PHC) and the Health Care Network (RAS). The adoption of guidelines from the Rede Cegonha, in transition to the Rede Alyne, and intersectoral strategies are essential to reduce maternal mortality and ensure safe and equitable motherhood.