Improving the quality of maternal and neonatal care: the role of standard based participatory assessments.

BACKGROUND: Gaps in quality of care are seriously affecting maternal and neonatal health globally but reports of successful quality improvement cycles implemented at large scale are scanty. We report the results of a nation-wide program to improve quality of maternal and neonatal hospital care in a lower-middle income country focusing on the role played by standard-based participatory assessments. METHODS: Improvements in the quality of maternal and neonatal care following an action-oriented participatory assessment of 19 areas covering the whole continuum from admission to discharge were measured after an average period of 10 months in four busy referral maternity hospitals in Uzbekistan. Information was collected by a multidisciplinary national team with international supervision through visit to hospital services, examination of medical records, direct observation of cases and interviews with staff and mothers. Scores (range 0 to 3) attributed to over 400 items and combined in average scores for each area were compared with the baseline assessment. RESULTS: Between the first and the second assessment, all four hospitals improved their overall score by an average 0.7 points out of 3 (range 0.4 to 1), i.e. by 22%. The improvements occurred in all main areas of care and were greater in the care of normal labor and delivery (+0.9), monitoring, infection control and mother and baby friendly care (+0.8) the role of the participatory action-oriented approach in determining the observed changes was estimated crucial in 6 out of 19 areas and contributory in other 8. Ongoing implementation of referral system and new classification of neonatal deaths impede the improved process of care to be reflected in current statistics. CONCLUSIONS: Important improvements in the quality of hospital care provided to mothers and newborn babies can be achieved through a standard-based action-oriented and participatory assessment and reassessment process.

Acceptability and feasibility of the use of 400 µg of sublingual misoprostol after mifepristone for medical abortion up to 63 days since the last menstrual period: evidence from Uzbekistan.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the efficacy, acceptability and feasibility of early medical abortion, with the option of home administration of misoprostol, in Uzbekistan. METHODS: A total of 450 women were enrolled at national, municipal and private facilities in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Women who presented for termination of pregnancy with gestations up to 63 days were recruited to participate in the study. All eligible pregnant women who consented to participate swallowed a 200 mg mifepristone pill in the clinic and were given the option of taking 400 µg misoprostol sublingually either at the clinic or at home 24-48 hours after mifepristone administration. Abortion status was determined two weeks later. RESULTS: Almost all women (99.5%) chose home administration of misoprostol. The sublingual route of misoprostol administration was acceptable or very acceptable to 89% of participants. Ninety-five percent of women had complete abortions after mifepristone and misoprostol. Almost all participants preferred a medical abortion to surgery for a future procedure (95%). CONCLUSIONS: Mifepristone medical abortion with home administration of misoprostol is an acceptable and feasible option for women in Uzbekistan. The method worked well at all three facility types.