Optimizing the delivery of contraceptives in low- and middle-income countries through task shifting: a systematic review of effectiveness and safety.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness and safety of task shifting for the delivery of injectable contraceptives, contraceptive implants, intrauterine devices (IUDs), tubal ligation and vasectomy in low- and middle-income countries. METHODS: Multiple electronic databases were searched up to 25 May 2012 for studies which had assessed the delivery of contraceptives by health workers with lower levels of training, compared to delivery by health workers usually assigned this role, or compared to no organized provision of contraceptives. We included randomized controlled trials, non-randomized controlled trials, controlled before-after studies, and interrupted time series. Data were extracted using a standard form and the certainty of the evidence found was assessed using GRADE. RESULTS: We identified six randomized controlled trials published between 1977 and 1995 that assessed the safety and effectiveness of task shifting for the delivery of long-term contraceptives. Two studies assessed IUD insertion by nurses compared to doctors, two assessed IUD insertion by auxiliary nurse-midwives compared to doctors, one assessed tubal ligation by midwives compared to doctors, and one assessed the delivery of vasectomy by medical students compared to doctors. In general, little or no difference was found in contraceptive outcomes between cadres. Study design limitations and the low number of eligible studies, however, allow only limited conclusions to be drawn. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that task shifting for the delivery of long-term contraceptives may be a safe and effective approach to increasing access to contraception. Further research is needed because the certainty of the evidence identified is variable.

Barriers to skilled birth attendance: a survey among mothers in rural Gambia.

The objectives of this cross-sectional survey were to identify the most important barriers for use of skilled attendance during childbirth by women in rural Gambia. We also assessed information received during antenatal care, preparations made prior to childbirth, and experiences and perceptions that may influence the use of skilled birth attendance in rural Gambia. The most frequently stated barriers for giving birth in a health facility were not having enough time to go (75%), and lack of transport (29%). The majority of the women (83%) stated that they preferred having a health worker attending their childbirth. More than seventy percent of the participants gave birth attended by a traditional birth attendant, but only 27% had intended to give birth at home. Sixty-four percent had made advance arrangements for the childbirth. Only 22% were informed about expected time of birth during antenatal care. Our findings suggest that the participants hold the knowledge and motivation that is necessary if practices are to be changed. Interventions aiming at ensuring timely transport of women to health facilities seem key to increased use of skilled birth attendants.

Appraisal of WHO guidelines in maternal health using the AGREE II assessment tool.

In 2007, the World Health Organization (WHO) received a criticism for a lack of transparency and systematic methods in the development of guidelines, which were at that time perceived as substantially driven by expert opinion. In this paper we assessed the quality of maternal and perinatal health guidelines developed since then. We used the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II tool to evaluate the quality of methodological rigour and transparency of four different WHO guidelines published between 2007 and 2011. Our findings showed high scores among the most recent guidelines on maternal and perinatal health suggesting higher quality. However, there is still potential for improvement, especially in including different stakeholder views, transparency of guidelines regarding the role of the funding body and presentation of the guideline document.