A research agenda to improve incidence and outcomes of assisted vaginal birth.

Access to emergency obstetric care, including assisted vaginal birth and caesarean birth, is crucial for improving maternal and childbirth outcomes. However, although the proportion of births by caesarean section has increased during the last few decades, the use of assisted vaginal birth has declined. This is particularly the case in low- and middle-income countries, despite an assisted vaginal birth often being less risky than caesarean birth. We therefore conducted a three-step process to identify a research agenda necessary to increase the use of, or reintroduce, assisted vaginal birth: after conducting an evidence synthesis, which informed a consultation with technical experts who proposed an initial research agenda, we sought and incorporated the views of women's representatives of this agenda. This process has allowed us to identify a comprehensive research agenda, with topics categorized as: (i) the need to understand women's perceptions of assisted vaginal birth, and provide appropriate and reliable information; (ii) the importance of training health-care providers in clinical skills but also in respectful care, effective communication, shared decision-making and informed consent; and (iii) the barriers to and facilitators of implementation and sustainability. From women's feedback, we learned of the urgent need to recognize labour, childbirth and postpartum experiences as inherently physiological and dignified human processes, in which interventions should only be implemented if necessary. The promotion and/or reintroduction of assisted vaginal birth in low-resource settings requires governments, policy-makers and hospital administrators to support skilled health-care providers who can, in turn, respectfully support women in labour and childbirth.

L'accès aux soins obstétriques d'urgence, y compris l'accouchement vaginal assisté et la césarienne, est essentiel pour améliorer les effets de la maternité et de l'accouchement. Toutefois, bien que la proportion de césariennes ait augmenté ces dernières décennies, le recours à l'accouchement vaginal assisté a diminué. C'est particulièrement le cas dans les pays à revenu faible ou intermédiaire, bien que l'accouchement vaginal assisté soit souvent moins risqué qu'une césarienne. Nous avons donc mené un processus en trois étapes afin d'imaginer un programme de recherche qui permettrait d'augmenter le recours à l'accouchement vaginal assisté ou de le réintroduire. Après avoir réalisé une synthèse des données probantes, qui a servi de base à une consultation avec des experts techniques qui ont proposé un programme de recherche initial, nous avons sollicité et incorporé les avis des représentantes des femmes pour ce programme. Ce processus nous a permis d'imaginer un programme de recherche complet, avec des sujets classés comme suit: (i) la nécessité de comprendre la perception qu'ont les femmes de l'accouchement vaginal assisté et de fournir des informations appropriées et fiables; (ii) l'importance de la formation des prestataires de soins de santé en matière de compétences cliniques, mais aussi de respect dans les soins de santé, de communication efficace, de prise de décision partagée et de consentement éclairé; ou (iii) les obstacles à la mise en œuvre et à la durabilité et les facteurs qui les facilitent. Les réactions de femmes nous ont appris qu'il était urgent de reconnaître que l'accouchement, la naissance et le post-partum sont des processus humains intrinsèquement physiologiques et dignes au cours desquels les interventions ne devraient être mises en œuvre qu'en cas de nécessité. La promotion et/ou la réintroduction de l'accouchement vaginal assisté dans les régions à faibles ressources nécessitent que les pouvoirs publics, les décideurs politiques et les administrations d'hôpitaux soutiennent les prestataires de soins de santé qualifiés, qui pourront à leur tour soutenir respectueusement les femmes pendant l'accouchement.

El acceso a la atención obstétrica de emergencia, incluido el parto vaginal asistido y el parto por cesárea, es crucial para mejorar los resultados de la maternidad y el parto. No obstante, aunque el porcentaje de partos por cesárea ha aumentado en las últimas décadas, el uso del parto vaginal asistido ha disminuido. Esto ocurre especialmente en los países de ingresos bajos y medios, a pesar de que un parto vaginal asistido suele ser menos arriesgado que un parto por cesárea. Por lo tanto, llevamos a cabo un proceso de tres pasos para identificar un programa de investigación necesario para aumentar el uso del parto vaginal asistido o volver a incorporarlo: tras realizar una síntesis de la evidencia, que sirvió de base para una consulta con expertos técnicos que propusieron un programa de investigación inicial, buscamos e integramos las opiniones de las representantes de las mujeres sobre este programa. Este proceso nos ha permitido identificar un programa de investigación exhaustivo, con temas categorizados como: (i) la necesidad de comprender las percepciones de las mujeres sobre el parto vaginal asistido, y proporcionar información adecuada y fiable; (ii) la importancia de formar a los profesionales sanitarios en habilidades clínicas, pero también en atención respetuosa, comunicación efectiva, toma de decisiones compartida y consentimiento informado; o (iii) las barreras y los facilitadores de la implementación y la sostenibilidad. A partir de las opiniones de las mujeres, nos enteramos de la urgente necesidad de reconocer las experiencias del parto, el alumbramiento y el posparto como procesos humanos inherentemente fisiológicos y dignos, en los que las intervenciones solo deben aplicarse si son necesarias. La promoción o la reincoporación del parto vaginal asistido en regiones de escasos recursos exige que los gobiernos, los responsables de formular políticas y los administradores de hospitales apoyen a los profesionales sanitarios capacitados que, a su vez, pueden ayudar a las mujeres en el trabajo de parto y el alumbramiento de manera respetuosa.

What maternal morbidities are and what they mean for women: A thematic analysis of twenty years of qualitative research in low and lower-middle income countries.

BACKGROUND: With an estimated 27 million annual incidents of maternal morbidity globally, how they are manifested or experienced is diverse and shaped by societal, cultural and personal influences. Using qualitative research to examine a woman's perception of her pregnancy, its complications, and potential long-term impact on her life can inform public health approaches and complement and inform biomedical classifications of maternal morbidities, historically considered a neglected dimension of safe motherhood. As part of the WHO's Maternal Morbidity Working Group's efforts to define and measure maternal morbidity, we carried out a thematic analysis of the qualitative literature published between 1998 and 2017 on how women experience maternal morbidity in low and lower-middle income countries. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Analysis of the 71 papers included in this study shows that women's status, their marital relationships, cultural attitudes towards fertility and social responses to infertility and pregnancy trauma are fundamental to determining how they will experience morbidity in the pregnancy and postpartum periods. We explore the physical, economic, psychological and social repercussions pregnancy can produce for women, and how resource disadvantage (systemic, financial and contextual) can exacerbate these problems. In addition to an analysis of ten themes that emerged across the different contexts, this paper presents which morbidities have received attention in different regions and the trends in researching morbidities over time. We observed an increase in qualitative research on this topic, generally undertaken through interviews and focus groups. Our analysis calls for the pursuit of high quality qualitative research that includes repeat interviews, participant observation and triangulation of sources to inform and fuel critical advocacy and programmatic work on maternal morbidities that addresses their prevention and management, as well as the underlying systemic problems for women's status in society.

Health research in a turbulent region: the Reproductive Health Working Group.

The Reproductive Health Working Group (RHWG) was established in 1988 in Cairo to advance research in the Arab countries and Turkey on the health of women, broadly defined. The paper considers the ways in which the group contributed to global health conversations through three examples of interdisciplinary research that, in privileging local contexts, modified or even challenged prevailing approaches to health and often raised entirely new issues for consideration. The three examples cited in the paper are: (i) the network's early research on reproductive morbidity; (ii) a broad set of ongoing studies on childbirth/maternal health; and (iii) emerging research on health and conflict. The paper discusses how the RHWG has strengthened research capability in the region, and explores the reasons for the longevity of this research network.

Teaching research methodology to student midwives through a socio-constructivist educational model: The experience of the high school for science and health techniques of Tunis.

Since its independence in 1956, Tunisia's maternal health indicators have steadily improved as the result of the implementation of a national holistic strategy that emancipated women and developed midwifery education and maternal health services provision. The last review of the midwifery education programme, occurred in 2008, and was based on evidence based core competencies. This paper describes the implementation process of the socio-constructivist educational model used by to teach research methodology to student midwives, the changes observed among them, the challenges and the lessons learned.