Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, September 18, 2023 (PAHO)- Paediatricians and general practitioners from across the country strengthened their capacities in improving the quality of newborn care and reducing the burden of disease and disability in Bolivia with support from the Latin American Centre for Perinatology/Women's and Reproductive Health (CLP/WR), a centre of the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO).
The participating health professionals came from facilities at all three levels of health care. The workshop was facilitated by CLP/WR/PAHO/WHO regional expert on Perinatal Health, Pablo Durán. It is part of the implementation of the project "Improving the health of women and adolescent girls in vulnerable situations", implemented by PAHO/WHO with funding from Global Affairs Canada and close coordination with the Ministry of Health and Sports Bolivia.
The expert Pablo Durán presented the burden of mortality, disease and disability in the Region of the Americas: situation, perspective and challenges.
The action plan sets out a vision of a world where there are no preventable newborn deaths, where every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is celebrated, and women, babies and children survive, thrive and reach their full potential.
Duran said that in order to meet targets related to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 and the perinatal health, countries need to work on evidence and guidelines, build an institutional culture, ensure physical resources, have strengthened surveillance and monitoring systems, work on information, education and communication, strengthen human resource capacities, ensure community participation, and have a policy, legislative and regulatory framework.
He said it is required to: "Strengthen surveillance, analysis and response; disseminate, access and promote evidence and the acquisition of skills aimed at providing quality care; promote competent, motivated, empathetic, multidisciplinary, networked health teams; contribute to equity; and ensure newborn and family-centred care"
The workshop also addressed the topic of birth defects surveillance tools and proposals for the Americas and the feasibility analysis for the establishment and strengthening of surveillance and response to birth defects and rare diseases.
During the workshop, the PAHO clinical practice guidelines for the management of retinopathy of prematurity were presented, and the relevance and adequacy of the recommendations for Bolivia were reviewed and analysed. Recommendations and next steps for the development of the adaptation of the regional guideline were given.
The workshop reviewed the Perinatal Mortality Surveillance and Response Strategy, as well as the perinatal mortality surveillance and response strategies in Bolivia, and analysed opportunities for strengthening them: national perspective and regulations on quality of care and follow-up of newborns at risk; and guidelines and strategy for the follow-up of newborns at risk.
"Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response is a continuous cycle of action of identification, notification, review and analysis of maternal and perinatal deaths, followed by a response to prevent future deaths," Duran said.
He said that the reasons why it is important to have a strong MPDSR system are to: strengthen routine data systems on maternal and perinatal deaths, for identification and reporting of deaths in health facilities and communities, to link with existing surveillance systems such as civil registration and vital statistics, to provide detailed information on the cause of deaths, to strengthen interdisciplinary teams and communities, to link with existing surveillance systems such as civil registration and vital statistics, to provide detailed information on the cause of deaths.
Duran pointed out that the MPDSR is the responsibility of all health personnel. He also recalled that the guiding principles of maternal and perinatal death review are based on existing quality improvement committees and the work of the MPSDR framework. "Maternal and perinatal mortality reviews can be integrated. The response often involves a multi-sectoral approach. Maternal and perinatal death reviews should also be incorporated into the curricula of medical, nursing and midwifery institutions," said the expert.
There was also analysis and discussion of proposals for strengthening the follow-up of at-risk newborns in the community.
The workshop ended with the definition of prioritised strategies and actions to strengthen the quality of newborn care in Bolivia, addressing prevalent conditions and community follow
