Nigerian researchers and clinicians, led by a Central Coordination Team in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Northwest Nigeria, have made significant strides in understanding maternal and newborn health and mortality through the extensive use of data collected from hospitals across the country. Following a commitment by the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health in 2019, the World Health Organization and Nigerian collaborators established the Maternal and Perinatal Database and Dignity Programme (MPD-4-QED).
Its purpose: to facilitate periodic analysis of the quality of care provided to women and their newborns in Nigerian referral-level hospitals, and their outcomes. The programme was established in 54 hospitals across 36 states, each with its own dedicated team. This was a welcome intervention in a country with high maternal mortality burden.
This first-of-its-kind programme in Nigeria used an online, harmonized data collection system where data could be continuously entered and viewed in real-time by hospital management and staff to understand key information at their hospital. Data captured diverse measures ranging from caesarean section rates to companionship in labour to breastfeeding at time of hospital discharge.
The findings are featured in a new journal supplement in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, where comprehensive data from every state in Nigeria were analyzed in-country to offer an unprecedented look into the patterns and causes of maternal and newborn morbidity and deaths. The vast scale of data collection provided critical insights that can guide future healthcare interventions. The findings are poised to play an essential role in shaping national policies aimed at improving health outcomes for mothers and newborns. Early findings from the project were reported in a 2022 article .
In the supplement , titled Beyond the numbers: quality of perinatal care for mothers and babies in Nigerian referral level facilities, ten papers delve into the data the MPD-4-QED programme has generated. Topics include early pregnancy loss and preterm birth, hypertensive disorders, obstructed labour, postpartum haemorrhage, birth asphyxia and caesarean section, as well as neonatal jaundice and sepsis.
Together, the papers show how the use of a harmonized data system among Nigerian hospital and healthcare facilities can be used to assess quality of care and outcomes for women and their babies on a regular basis, and can play a crucial role in facilitating timely, life-saving interventions. Often, despite reaching health facilities, many women and their babies still die because of delays in receiving quality care. The data in this supplement show that with the right interventions at the right time, women and their babies have a better chance of survival.
Strengthening research capacity in Nigeria is crucial for generating high-quality, locally relevant data.
"Strengthening research capacity in Nigeria is crucial for generating high-quality, locally relevant data", said Dr Olufemi Oladapo, Head of the Maternal and Perinatal Health Unit in WHO's Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research Department including the UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP). "Empowering local researchers to lead data collection and analysis ensures that the evidence produced reflects the realities on the ground, driving more effective health policies and interventions that can improve outcomes for the entire population."
We have been honoured to work with the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health on the Maternal and Perinatal Database and Dignity Programme (MPD- 4- QED)", said Dr Walter Kazadi Mulombo, Head of WHO's Country Office in Nigeria. "We hope the evidence collated in these research papers will ultimately strengthen systems and improve vital healthcare infrastructure."
