The Ningo-Prampram District Health Directorate has started a pregnancy school at the Prampram Health Centre to educate residents on pregnancy-related issues.

The school, being run on monthly basis, started in July this year.

Madam Rebecca Onyame, Principal Nursing Officer (Public Health) at the Directorate, announced this at the weekend at a stakeholders meeting organised by the Prampram Traditional Council.

Madam Onyame said the introduction of the school was in line with the Millennium Development Goals four and five which concern reducing maternal and neonatal mortality.

She encouraged expectant fathers to attend the pregnancy school with their partners to learn more about pregnancy, delivery, post natal care and neonatal issues.

Madam Onyame said myths about pregnancy, such as giving birth to a boy or twins when a woman's feet swells during pregnancy, were dealt with at the pregnancy school.

She urged husbands, relatives and the society to ensure that pregnant women attend antenatal at least four times before delivery and reminded them to take all medication and injections as prescribed by health professionals.

Madam Onyame indicated that with such support from husbands and society, maternal and neonatal mortality would be reduced drastically.

Madam Mary Wilson, Deputy Director of Nursing Services (DDNS) at the Directorate, in a presentation, complained about the high rate of teenage pregnancy in the District.

Madam Wilson said a total of 195 teenage pregnancies representing 16.5 per cent of the 1,185 antenatal registrants were recorded in the District between January and June this year.

She said the Directorate recorded 203 teenage pregnancies representing 16.3 per cent of 1,243 antenatal registrants in 2013.

She advised parents to always monitor the whereabouts of their children and educate them on the dangers of pre-marital sex.

Madam Wilson said as part of measures to decrease the teenage pregnancy rate, the Directorate organised frequent health education fora at the various schools.

Nene Tetteh Dan III, Paramount Chief of Prampram, who is a retired health officer, said every pregnancy carried an amount of risk making it very important for pregnant women to attend antenatal for early detection and remedies of such risk factors.

He reiterated the need for religious and opinion leaders to encourage teenagers to stay away from sex.

He urged them to use their platforms to educate residents about Cholera and Ebola, saying that, it was sad that people were dying of cholera due to poor sanitation and personal hygiene.

He encouraged residents to register with the National Health Insurance Scheme because it was the best even though it did not cover all sicknesses.