Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35288391›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2022

Impact of the implementation of the WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist on essential birth practices and adverse events in two Brazilian hospitals: a before and after study.

Kelienny de Meneses Sousa, Pedro Jesús Saturno-Hernández, Tatyana Maria Silva de Souza Rosendo, Marise Reis de Freitas, Rose L Molina, Wilton Rodrigues Medeiros, Edna Marta Mendes da Silva, Zenewton André da Silva Gama

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
10.3field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Impact of the WHO safe childbirth checklist on birth attendant behavior and maternal-newborn outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.

Kelienny de Meneses SousaGraduate Program in Collective Health, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0001-6842-7033
Pedro Jesús Saturno-HernándezQualiSaúde-The Quality in Health Services Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
Tatyana Maria Silva de Souza RosendoQualiSaúde-The Quality in Health Services Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
Marise Reis de FreitasQualiSaúde-The Quality in Health Services Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
Rose L MolinaDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Wilton Rodrigues MedeirosQualiSaúde-The Quality in Health Services Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
Edna Marta Mendes da SilvaQualiSaúde-The Quality in Health Services Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
Zenewton André da Silva GamaGraduate Program in Collective Health, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil zenewton.gama@ufrn.br.ORCID 0000-0003-0818-9680
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte · BRBrigham and Women's Hospital · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist (SCC) is a promising initiative for safety in childbirth care, but the evidence about its impact on clinical outcomes is limited. This study analysed the impact of SCC on essential birth practices (EBPs), obstetric complications and adverse events (AEs) in hospitals of different profiles.

designQuasi-experimental, time-series study and pre/post intervention.

settingTwo hospitals in North-East Brazil, one at a tertiary level (H1) and another at a secondary level (H2).

participants1440 women and their newborns, excluding those with congenital malformations.

interventionsThe implementation of the SCC involved its cross-cultural adaptation, raising awareness with videos and posters, learning sessions about the SCC and auditing and feedback on adherence indicators. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Simple and composite indicators related to seven EBPs, 3 complications and 10 AEs were monitored for 1 year, every 2 weeks, totalling 1440 observed deliveries.

resultsThe checklist was adopted in 83.3% (n=300) of deliveries in H1 and in 33.6% (n=121) in H2. The hospital with the highest adoption rate for SCC (H1) showed greater adherence to EBPs (improvement of 50.9%;p<0.001) and greater reduction in clinical outcome indicators compared with its baseline: percentage of deliveries with severe complications (reduction of 30.8%;p=0.005); Adverse Outcome Index (reduction of 25.6%;p=0.049); Weighted Adverse Outcome Score (reduction of 39.5%;p<0.001); Severity Index (reduction of 18.4%;p<0.001). In H2, whose adherence to the SCC was lower, there was an improvement of 24.7% compared with before SCC implementation in the composite indicator of EBPs (p=0.002) and a reduction of 49.2% in severe complications (p=0.027), but there was no significant reduction in AEs.

conclusionsA multifaceted SCC-based intervention can be effective in improving adherence to EBPs and clinical outcomes in childbirth. The context and adherence to the SCC seem to modulate its impact, working better in a hospital of higher complexity.

Indexed as

ChecklistDelivery, ObstetricBrazilFemaleHospitalsHumansInfant, NewbornPregnancyWorld Health Organizationhealth & safetyobstetricspublic healthquality in health care

Identifiers

PMID35288391
PMCPMC8921924
OpenAlexW4220817134

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.