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Improving the quality of maternity services in Uganda through accelerated implementation of essential interventions by healthcare professional associations
Author(s) -
Spira Cintia,
Kwizera Amata,
Jacob Sue,
Amongin Dinah,
Ngonzi Joseph,
Namisi Charles P.,
Byaruhanga Romano,
Rushwan Hamid,
Cooper Peter,
DayStirk Frances,
Berrueta Mabel,
GarcíaElorrio Ezequiel,
Belizán José M.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
international journal of gynecology and obstetrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.895
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1879-3479
pISSN - 0020-7292
DOI - 10.1002/ijgo.12241
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , medicine , promotion (chess) , breastfeeding , hygiene , quality management , nursing , exploratory research , health care , family medicine , pediatrics , operations management , management system , pathology , sociology , politics , political science , anthropology , law , economics , economic growth
Abstract Objective To assess whether the implementation of a package of activities through the joint action of the three international healthcare professionals associations ( HCPA s) increased the use of intrapartum and postnatal essential interventions ( EI s) in two hospitals in Uganda. Methods A non‐controlled before‐and‐after study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of a package of activities designed to change practice relating to nine EI s among providers. Coverage of the EI s was measured in a 3‐month pre‐implementation period and a 3‐month post‐implementation period in 2014. Data were obtained for women older than 18 years who delivered vaginally or by cesarean. Results Overall, 4816 women were included. Level of use remained high for EI s used widely at baseline. Some EI s that had low use at baseline did not show improvement after the implementation. Promotion of breastfeeding showed a significant improvement in the Kampala hospital, from 8.5% (8/94) to 25.6% (30/117; P =0.001), whereas promotion of hygiene in cord care improved at the Mbarara hospital, from 0.1% (2/1592) to 46.0% (622/1351; P <0.001). Conclusion These exploratory results show that a package delivered through the joint work of the three HCPA s was feasible to implement along with rigorous data collection. Although the data show disparities, trends suggest that improvement could be achieved.