Not a single poster or brochure

April 21 was Ibu Kartini day, in honor of the Indonesian hero who inspired so many women and who died in childbirth. Despite some progress in combating maternal mortality, it remains a great problem in Indonesia. On April 20, I had the misfortune to spend five hours in the lobby of Rumah Sakit Bunda, one of Jakarta's better maternity hospitals. During that wait, which was characterized by a total lack of professionalism (but that is another letter) I was struck by the fact that there was not one single poster, pamphlet, or brochure in the lobby on safe motherhood, maternal mortality risks and solutions, family planning, or any other reproductive health message.

There was a captive audience in that lobby who surely would have been more interested in learning about health and pregnancy than staring at blank walls for hours. I know for a fact that very good material on these subjects is available through the Ministry of Health, National Family Planning Board, and donor- sponsored health projects. Currently, the Maternal Neo-natal Health (MNH) program is conducting a white ribbon campaign to increase awareness of maternal mortality and it would be an ideal source for information, education and communication (IEC) materials. Rumah Sakit Bunda's clients are already better off then many other Indonesian women because they are seeking services from a hospital and are receiving prenatal care. Imagine how much better off they could be if Rumah Sakit Bunda made a better attempt to provide educational materials. It is a real shame that an institution which focuses on maternity is not taking advantage of the good IEC work of the Ministry of Health and others. If Indonesia is truly going to honor the memory of Ibu Kartini, then institutions like Rumah Sakit Bunda need to increase their effort to share information on safe motherhood with their clients.

LUCY S. MIZE

Jakarta