One-third of all maternal deaths can be traced to high blood pressure in pregnancy and in the weeks after giving birth. Yet many women don’t know how dangerous high blood pressure can be. And they may not realize they are at risk for many life-threatening conditions such as pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. Because high blood pressure can be asymptomatic, women with hypertension may not feel unwell or even know that their health is compromised.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a non-communicable disease that affects maternal health. MS is an unpredictable chronic disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. The progress of this disease, its severity, and specific symptoms cannot yet be predicted and varies by individual. Symptoms may disappear or diminish completely, or they may persist and worsen over time. Typical symptoms include fatigue, numbness and tingling, blurred vision, imbalance, pain, and problems with memory and concentration.

Every day there are more than 800 maternal deaths worldwide. Who are these women? They are reproductive women across the globe. They are our sisters, aunts, friends, and co-workers. They are leaders in our community, family members, and caregivers. When assessing the state of maternal morbidity and mortality in the United States, one must consider not only what we know, but also what must change.

What is inherent in the word “universal,” is that it is for all women, said Anneka Knutsson, Chief of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Branch at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), at a recent Wilson Center event on the importance of midwives in achieving universal health coverage.

“Women and men face very different risks and challenges,” said Chitra Nagarajan, a writer and journalist who covers climate change, conflict, and gender. She spoke in this week’s podcast about what’s changed in the Lake Chad region. In the last few years the combination of profound climate change and high levels of insecurity have made life harder for the local population. To get a sense of how recent changes have affected Lake Chad’s residents, Nagarajan interviewed more than 250 people. These are some of her findings.

We are in the decade of action, said Anneka Knutsson, Chief of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Branch at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), at a recent Wilson Center event on midwives’ crucial role in achieving universal health coverage by 2030. The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated 2020 as the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife to celebrate the accomplishments and importance of nurses and midwives in providing not just maternal health care, but care across the lifespan. Currently, 22 million nurses and 2 million midwives globally deliver 80 percent of all healthcare services in low-resource settings. However, the world will need 9 million more nurses and midwives by 2030 to meet rising healthcare demands.