Management of life threatening obstetrical emergencies : protocols and flow diagrams for use by registered/licensed nurse - midwives or midwives in health centers and private or government services

The protocols were designed to enable midwives to give prompt, emergency treatment for life threatening conditions in order to reduce maternal and perinatal mortality. The protocols also enable health and maternity centers to establish standards of practice for the management of eight potentially life-threatening obstetrical conditions: Anemia, Antepartum Hemorrhage, Eclampsia, Management of Prolonged First Stage of Labor, Postpartum Hemorrhage, Pre-eclampsia, Premature Rupture of the Membranes, Puerperal Sepsis. These protocols and flow charts can be used in pre-and in-service training for midwives and for use in the clinical situation to guide the practice of clinical midwives, as well as orient new staff. A selection of these protocols has been used by MotherCare field staff in long-term country projects in Nigeria and Uganda as part of a training course to upgrade nurse-midwives" skills to address obstetrical emergencies. Other protocols have been designed based on the recommendations of WHO and according to midwifery and obstetrical texts (refer to References in the Appendix). (Author abstract)