Why Mothers Died and How Their Lives Are Saved

"Everyone with an interest in women's issues needs to know how the appalling death rate from pregnancy was tackled during the 20th century and is still being tackled today. This insightful account is written for lay and professional readers by the women and men who ran the most recent Enquiries"--

1. Historical background; 2. The first steps: 1900-1939; 3. How the confidential enquiries evolved; 4. The missing chapter? Prolonged labour and obstetric trauma; 5. How the change began: the story of sepsis; 6. Haemorrhage then and now; 7. Hypertension: enquiries, trials and recommendations; 8. The story of abortion; 9. Challenging tradition: the story of embolism; 10. Pregnancy and illness: indirect deaths; 11. Maternal death due to anaesthesia; 12. Psychiatric illness; 13. The mothers who died: the social deteminants of maternal deaths; 14. The legacy in the UK: the concept of 'near miss' and the need to keep saving lives; 15. International maternal health: global action; 16. International action: personal views.