Review of the evidence for interventions to reduce perinatal mortality in low- and middle-income countries

Appraising LaQshya's potential in measuring quality of care for mothers and newborns: a comprehensive review of India's Labor Room Quality Improvement Initiative

BACKGROUND

Poor intrapartum care in India contributes to high maternal and newborn mortality. India's Labor Room Quality Improvement Initiative (LaQshya) launched in 2017, aims to improve intrapartum care by minimizing complications, enforcing protocols, and promoting respectful maternity care (RMC). However, limited studies pose a challenge to fully examine its potential to assess quality of maternal and newborn care. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap and reviews LaQshya's ability to assess maternal and newborn care quality. Findings will guide modifications for enhancing LaQshya's effectiveness.

METHODS

We reviewed LaQshya's ability to assess the quality of care through a two-step approach: a comprehensive descriptive analysis using document reviews to highlight program attributes, enablers, and challenges affecting LaQshya's quality assessment capability, and a comparison of its measurement parameters with the 352 quality measures outlined in the WHO Standards for Maternal and Newborn Care. Comparing LaQshya with WHO standards offers insights into how its measurement criteria align with global standards for assessing maternity and newborn care quality.

RESULTS

LaQshya utilizes several proven catalysts to enhance and measure quality- institutional structures, empirical measures, external validation, certification, and performance incentives for high-quality care. The program also embodies contemporary methods like quality circles, rapid improvement cycles, ongoing facility training, and plan-do-check, and act (PDCA) strategies for sustained quality enhancement. Key drivers of LaQshya's assessment are- leadership, staff mentoring, digital infrastructure and stakeholder engagement from certified facilities. However, governance issues, understaffing, unclear directives, competency gaps, staff reluctance towards new quality improvement approaches inhibit the program, and its capacity to enhance quality of care. LaQshya addresses 76% of WHO's 352 quality measures for maternal and newborn care but lacks comprehensive assessment of crucial elements: harmful labor practices, mistreatment of mothers or newborns, childbirth support, and effective clinical leadership and supervision.

CONCLUSION

LaQshya is a powerful model for evaluating quality of care, surpassing other global assessment tools. To achieve its maximum potential, we suggest strengthening district governance structures and offering tailored training programs for RMC and other new quality processes. Furthermore, expanding its quality measurement metrics to effectively assess provider accountability, patient outcomes, rights, staff supervision, and health facility leadership will increase its ability to assess quality improvements.

Epidemiology of neonatal mortality: a spatial and multilevel analysis of the 2019 mini-Ethiopian demographic and health survey data

BACKGROUND

Sub-Saharan African countries are a high-burden region of neonatal mortality and showed slow progress in its reduction. In developing countries, as long as the current trend of mortality persists, achieving a sustainable development target for neonatal mortality would be challenging. The aim of this study was to detect significant geographic areas and identify community and individual-level predictors of neonatal mortality in Ethiopia to draw attention to a policy.

METHODS

A weighted total sample of 24,136 mothers from the 2019 mini-Ethiopian demographic and health survey data were included in the analysis. Global Moran's I statistics was run to check the clustering of neonatal mortality and then kriging interpolation was done to predict the magnitude of neonatal mortality in Ethiopia. In addition, SaTScan analysis was also executed to identify hot spot clusters of neonatal mortality. Finally, a multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression model was used to identify community and individual-level predictors of early neonatal and neonatal mortality.

RESULTS

The lifetime early neonatal and neonatal mortality among mothers in Ethiopia was 5.08 (95% CI: 4.13-6.03) and 6.54 (5.55, 7.52) per 1000 births respectively. Neonatal mortality was spatially clustered in the country and the SaTScan analysis identified significant hotspot areas of neonatal mortality in the Amhara and Afar regions and some areas of the Somali and Oromia regions. Its predicted magnitude was > 8 per 1000 births in wide areas of the Amhara and Benishangul regions. A multilevel mixed-effect logistics regression analysis identified that a lower level of maternal education, being a twin neonate, and being a male neonate were predictors of both early neonatal and neonatal mortality. Whereas, the younger age of mothers predicted neonatal mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

Neonatal mortality in Ethiopia is geographically clustered and sociodemographic and obstetric factors played a significant role. Policy direction should focus on evidence-based practices like midwives-led community and facility-based continuum of care from preconception to postnatal periods to possibly reduce neonatal mortality.

Incidence, Indications, Risk Factors, and Outcomes of Emergency Peripartum Hysterectomy Worldwide: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To describe the incidence, indications, risk factors, outcomes, and management of emergency peripartum hysterectomy globally and to compare outcomes among different income settings.

DATA SOURCES

PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, ClinicalTrials.gov, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Emcare databases up to December 10, 2021.

METHODS OF STUDY SELECTION

Update of a systematic review and meta-analysis (2016). Studies were eligible if they reported the incidence of emergency peripartum hysterectomy, defined as surgical removal of the uterus for severe obstetric complications up to 6 weeks postpartum. Title and abstract screening and full-text review were performed using Endnote data-management software. Of 8,775 articles screened, 26 were included that were published after 2015, making the total number of included studies 154. A subanalysis was performed for the outcomes of interest per income setting.

TABULATION, INTEGRATION, AND RESULTS

The meta-analysis included 154 studies: 14,409 emergency peripartum hysterectomies were performed in 17,127,499 births in 42 countries. Overall pooled incidence of hysterectomy was 1.1 per 1,000 births (95% CI 1.0-1.3). The highest incidence was observed in lower middle-income settings (3/1,000 births, 95% CI 2.5-3.5), and the lowest incidence was observed in high-income settings (0.7/1,000 births, 95% CI 0.5-0.8). The most common indications were placental pathology (38.0%, 95% CI 33.9-42.4), uterine atony (27.0%, 95% CI 24.6-29.5), and uterine rupture (21.2%, 95% CI 17.8-25.0). In lower middle-income countries, uterine rupture (44.5%, 95% CI 36.6-52.7) was the most common indication; placental pathology (48.4%, 95% CI 43.5-53.4) was most frequent in high-income settings. To prevent hysterectomy, uterotonic medication was used in 2,706 women (17%): 53.2% received oxytocin, 44.6% prostaglandins, and 17.3% ergometrine. Surgical measures to prevent hysterectomy were taken in 80.5% of women, the most common being compressive techniques performed in 62.6% (95% CI 38.3-81.9). The most common complications were febrile (29.7%, 95% CI 25.4-34.3) and hematologic (27.5%, 95% CI 20.4-35.9). The overall maternal case fatality rate was 3.2 per 100 emergency peripartum hysterectomies (95% CI 2.5-4.2) and was higher in lower middle-income settings (11.2/100 emergency peripartum hysterectomies 95% CI 8.9-14.1) and lower in high-income settings (1.0/100 emergency peripartum hysterectomies 95% CI 0.6-1.6).

CONCLUSION

Substantial differences across income settings exist in the incidence of emergency peripartum hysterectomy. Women in lower-income settings have a higher risk of undergoing emergency peripartum hysterectomy and suffer more procedure-related morbidity and mortality. The frequency of emergency peripartum hysterectomy is likely to increase in light of increasing cesarean delivery rates.

Neonatal resuscitation from a global perspective

The majority of perinatal and neonatal mortality occurs in low-resource settings in low- and middle-income countries. Access and quality of care at delivery are major determinants of the health and survival of newborn infants. Availability of basic neonatal resuscitation care at birth has improved, but basic neonatal resuscitation at birth or high-quality care continues to be inaccessible in some settings, leading to persistently high perinatal and neonatal mortality. Low-resource settings of high-income countries and socially disadvantaged communities also suffer from inadequate access to quality perinatal healthcare. Quality improvement, implementation research, and innovation should focus on improving the quality of perinatal healthcare and perinatal and neonatal outcomes in low-resource settings. The current review presents an update on issues confronting universal availability of optimal resuscitation care at birth and provides an update on ongoing efforts to address them.

Incidence of adverse perinatal outcomes and risk factors among women with pre-eclampsia, southern Ethiopia: a prospective open cohort study

BACKGROUND

In Ethiopia, in 2021, more than 80% of all newborn deaths were caused by preventable and treatable conditions. This study aimed to measure the incidence of adverse perinatal outcomes and risk factors among women with pre-eclampsia in the Sidama region of southern Ethiopia.

METHODS

A prospective open cohort study was conducted from 8 August 2019 to 1 October 2020. We enrolled 363 women with pre-eclampsia and 367 normotensive women at ≥20 weeks of gestation and followed them until the 37th week. We then followed them until the seventh day after delivery up to the last perinatal outcome status was ascertained. A log-binomial logistic regression model was used to estimate the incidence of adverse perinatal outcomes and its risk factors among women with pre-eclampsia. Relative risk (RR) with a 95% CI was reported. A p<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

There were 224 adverse perinatal outcomes observed in the 363 women with pre-eclampsia compared with 136 adverse perinatal outcomes in the 367 normotensive women (p<0.001). There were 23 early neonatal deaths in the pre-eclampsia group compared with six deaths in the normotensive group (p<0.001). There were 35 perinatal deaths in the pre-eclampsia group compared with 16 deaths in the normotensive group (p<0.05). Women with severe features of pre-eclampsia had a 46% (adjusted RR 1.46, 95% CI 1.38 to 2.77) higher risk for adverse perinatal outcomes compared with women without severe features of pre-eclampsia.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, more adverse perinatal outcomes occurred among women with pre-eclampsia after controlling for confounders. A higher perinatal outcome observed among women with pre-eclampsia, especially among women with severe features of pre-eclampsia, and those admitted to hospital at <34 weeks. This paper highlights the significantly elevated perinatal risks associated with pre-eclampsia, especially when it has severe features.

Determinants of stillbirth among reviewed perinatal deaths in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

The global burden of stillbirth has declined over time. However, the problem is still prominent in South Asian and Sub-Saharan African countries. Ethiopia is one of the top stillbirth-reporting countries worldwide. Despite several measures taken to reduce the burden of stillbirth; the pace of decline was not as good as the post-neonatal death. Thus, this study is aimed at identifying potential factors related to stillbirth in Ethiopia based on nationally reviewed perinatal deaths.

METHOD

The national perinatal death surveillance data were used for this study. A total of 3,814 reviewed perinatal death were included in the study. Two model families,namely generalized estimating equation, and alternating logistic regression models from marginal model family were employed to investigate the risk factors of stillbirth. The alternating logistic regression model was selected as the best fit for the final analysis.

RESULT

Among reviewed perinatal deaths nearly forty percent (37.4%) were stillbirths. The findings from the multivariate analysis demonstrated that the place of birth (in transit and at home), cause of death (infection, and congenital and chromosomal abnormalities), maternal health condition (women with complications of pregnancy, placenta, and cord), delay one (delay in deciding to seek care) and delay three (delay in receiving adequate care) were associated with an increased risk of having a stillbirth. On the other hand, maternal education (women with primary and above education level) and the type of health facility (women who were treated in secondary and tertiary health care) were associated with a decreased risk of having a stillbirth.

CONCLUSION

The study identified that both individual (place of delivery, cause of death, maternal health condition, maternal education, and delay one) and facility level (type of health facility and delay three) factors contributed to stillbirth outcome. Therefore, policies that are aimed at encouraging institutional delivery, improving health seeking behavior, and strengthening facility-level readiness should be devised to reduce the high burden of stillbirth in Ethiopia.

Neonatal Resuscitation Research Priorities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Several critical physiological changes occur during birth. Optimal and timely resuscitation is essential to avoid morbidity and mortality. The International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) is a multinational committee that publishes evidence-based consensus and treatment recommendations for resuscitation in various scenarios including that for neonatal resuscitation. The majority of perinatal deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs); however, there is limited research output from LMICs to generate evidence-based practice recommendations specific for LMICs. The current review identifies key areas of neonatal resuscitation-related research needed from LMICs to inform evidence-based resuscitation of neonates in LMICs.

Perinatal Mortality Analysis in Espírito Santo, Brazil, 2008 to 2017

This is an ecological and time-series study using secondary data on perinatal mortality and its components from 2008 to 2017 in Espírito Santo, Brazil. The data were collected from the Mortality Information System (SIM) and Live Births Information System (SINASC) of the Unified Health System Informatics Department (DATASUS) in June 2019. The perinatal mortality rate (×1000 total births) was calculated. Time series were constructed from the perinatal mortality rate for the regions and Espírito Santo. To analyze the trend, the Prais-Winsten model was used. From 2008 to 2017 there were 8132 perinatal deaths (4939 fetal and 3193 early neonatal) out of a total of 542,802 births, a perinatal mortality rate of 15.0/1000 total births. The fetal/early neonatal ratio was 1.5:1, with a strong positive correlation early neonatal mortality rate, perinatal mortality rate, r (9) = 0.8893, with a significance level of p = 0.000574. The presence of differences in trends by health region was observed. Risk factors that stood out were as follows: mother's age ranging between 10 and 19 or 40 and 49 years old, with no education, a gestational age between 22 and 36 weeks, triple and double pregnancy, and a birth weight below 2499 g. Among the causes of death, 49.70% of deaths were concentrated in category of the tenth edition of the International Classification of Diseases, fetuses and newborns affected by maternal factors and complications of pregnancy, labor, and delivery (P00-P04), and 11.03% were in the category of intrauterine hypoxia and birth asphyxia (P20-P21), both related to proper care during pregnancy and childbirth. We observed a slow reduction in the perinatal mortality rate in the state of Espírito Santo from 2008 to 2017.

Community health workers at the dawn of a new era: 6. Recruitment, training, and continuing education

BACKGROUND

This is the sixth of our 11-paper supplement entitled "Community Health Workers at the Dawn of New Era". Expectations of community health workers (CHWs) have expanded in recent years to encompass a wider array of services to numerous subpopulations, engage communities to collaborate with and to assist health systems in responding to complex and sometimes intensive threats. In this paper, we explore a set of key considerations for training of CHWs in response to their enhanced and changing roles and provide actionable recommendations based on current evidence and case examples for health systems leaders and other stakeholders to utilize.

METHODS

We carried out a focused review of relevant literature. This review included particular attention to a 2014 book chapter on training of CHWs for large-scale programmes, a systematic review of reviews about CHWs, the 2018 WHO guideline for CHWs, and a 2020 compendium of 29 national CHW programmes. We summarized the findings of this latter work as they pertain to training. We incorporated the approach to training used by two exemplary national CHW programmes: for health extension workers in Ethiopia and shasthya shebikas in Bangladesh. Finally, we incorporated the extensive personal experiences of all the authors regarding issues in the training of CHWs.

RESULTS

The paper explores three key themes: (1) professionalism, (2) quality and performance, and (3) scaling up. Professionalism: CHW tasks are expanding. As more CHWs become professionalized and highly skilled, there will still be a need for neighbourhood-level voluntary CHWs with a limited scope of work. Quality and performance: Training approaches covering relevant content and engaging CHWs with other related cadres are key to setting CHWs up to be well prepared. Strategies that have been recently integrated into training include technological tools and provision of additional knowledge; other strategies emphasize the ongoing value of long-standing approaches such as regular home visitation. Scale-up: Scaling up entails reaching more people and/or adding more complexity and quality to a programme serving a defined population. When CHW programmes expand, many aspects of health systems and the roles of other cadres of workers will need to adapt, due to task shifting and task sharing by CHWs.

CONCLUSION

Going forward, if CHW programmes are to reach their full potential, ongoing, up-to-date, professionalized training for CHWs that is integrated with training of other cadres and that is responsive to continued changes and emerging needs will be essential. Professionalized training will require ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the quality of training, continual updating of pre-service training, and ongoing in-service training-not only for the CHWs themselves but also for those with whom CHWs work, including communities, CHW supervisors, and other cadres of health professionals. Strong leadership, adequate funding, and attention to the needs of each cadre of CHWs can make this possible.

The effect of antenatal care on perinatal outcomes in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The estimated annual global perinatal and neonatal death is four million. Stillbirths are almost equivalent to neonatal mortality, yet they have not received the same attention. Antenatal care is generally thought to be an effective method of improving pregnancy outcomes, but its effectiveness as a means of reducing perinatal mortality has not been evaluated in Ethiopia. Therefore, we will identify the pooled effect of antenatal care on perinatal outcomes in Ethiopia.

METHODS

Medline, Embase, Cinahl, African journal online and Google Scholar was searched for articles published in English language between January 1990 and May 2020. Two independent assessors selected studies and extracted data from eligible articles. The Risk of Bias Assessment tool for Non-Randomized Studies was used to assess the quality of each included study. Data analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3. Heterogeneity and publication bias were assessed using I2 test statistical significance and Egger's test for small-study effects respectively. The random effect model was employed, and forest plot was used to present the risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI).

RESULTS

Thirteen out of seventeen included studies revealed antenatal care utilization had a significant association with perinatal outcomes. The pooled risk ratio by the random-effects model for perinatal death was 0.42 (95% CI: 0.34, 0.52); stillbirth 0.34 (95% CI: 0.25, 0.46); early neonatal death 0.85 (95% CI: 0.21. 3.49).

CONCLUSION

Women who attended at least one antenatal care visit were more likely to give birth to an alive neonate that survives compared to their counterpart. Therefore, the Ethiopian Ministry of health and other stakeholders should design tailored interventions to increase antenatal care utilization since it has been shown to reduce perinatal mortality.