Maternity care improvements linked to fewer stillbirths and newborn deaths in sub-Saharan Africa
A combination of training, quality improvement and leadership support in hospitals across four countries in sub-Saharan Africa is linked to fewer stillbirths and deaths among newborns during the first 24 hours of life, according to a study led by Karolinska Institutet and published in Nature Medicine.
A comprehensive study conducted across four sub-Saharan African countries has found that improvements in maternity care, involving training, quality enhancements and leadership support, have led to a significant reduction in stillbirths and neonatal deaths within the first 24 hours of life. The ALERT project, led by researchers from Karolinska Institutet, implemented a multi-faceted intervention in 16 hospitals, which resulted in a 22% decrease in early perinatal deaths and a 19% decrease in oxygen-deprivation-related complications among newborns.
The findings highlight the potential for enhancing maternity care quality, optimizing working practices, and strengthening care teams and leadership, even in resource-limited settings. The study's principal investigator, Claudia Hanson, emphasizes the unacceptable loss of lives and suffering experienced by families, and the need for innovative approaches to further reduce mortality rates, potentially incorporating AI-supported decision-support systems and improved guidelines.
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