UCSF opens photo exhibit "Honor your mother: Save a mother's life"

By Kristen Bole

## What:

The UCSF Safe Motherhood Program is hosting a photo exhibit and reception to honor mothers worldwide. The exhibit will include photographs by Mark Tuschman and Susan Rae Ross of mothers worldwide. All photo sales will support the Safe Motherhood Program, which aims to save thousands of mothers’ lives each year in developing countries by reducing death in childbirth.

Attendees also can purchase a LifeWrap™ in their mother’s honor for Mother’s Day, which will be donated to a remote clinic for use after a problematic childbirth. The LifeWrap™ is an innovative, neoprene body suit designed to stop blood loss and reverse shock so patients can be safely transported to a hospital.

## When:

Wednesday, April 30, 2008
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (Reception)

## Where:

Ida’s Café, UCSF National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health
2356 Sutter St, Ground Floor (cross street Divisadero)
San Francisco

## Why:

More than 500,000 women die in pregnancy or childbirth each year, according to the World Health Organization, and more than 99 percent are in developing countries. Obstetric hemorrhage accounts for approximately 25–30 percent of all maternal deaths. The Safe Motherhood Program piloted the LifeWrap™ in Egypt and Nigeria over the past 5 years, with initial results showing a 69 percent decrease in death and severe illness. The program has recently expanded to Zambia and Zimbabwe.

## Interview, Photo and Video Opportunities:

Suellen Miller, PhD, CNM, founding director of UCSF Safe Motherhood Programs; professional photographs and UCSF scientists in women’s health

## Media Contact: 

Kristen Bole, UCSF News Office, 415-476-2557.

For more information on the LifeWrap™, please visit http://www.lifewraps.org, write to [email protected] or call 415-597-9205.