Advancing the newborn and stillbirth global agenda: priorities for the next decade

Abstract

Remarkable advances have been made over the past decade in defining the burden of newborn mortality and morbidity and stillbirths, and in identifying interventions to address the major risk factors and causes of deaths. However, progress in saving newborn lives and preventing stillbirths in countries lags behind that for maternal mortality and for children aged 1-59 months. To accelerate progress, greater focus is needed on improving coverage, quality and equity of care at birth -particularly obstetric care during labour and childbirth, and care for small and sick newborns, which gives a triple return on investment, reducing maternal and newborn lives as well as stillbirths. Securing nationallevel political priority for newborn health and survival and stillbirths, and implementation of the Every Newborn Action Plan are critical to accomplishing the unfinished global agenda for newborns and stillbirths beyond 2015.BACKGROUND

Defining disrespect and abuse of newborns: a review of the evidence and an expanded typology of respectful maternity care

“…Especially in low-resource settings with high financial or opportunity costs to utilise health services, negative experiences during labour or at postnatal care—or simply the possibility of such—may further discourage routine or emergency health care utilisation. Improved clinical quality of obstetric care is expected to increase utilisation of services and reduction in preventable stillbirths and early neonatal deaths [7], but further attention is needed to the experiential quality of postnatal care and care seeking. Preliminary evidence indicates that newborns and their families experience discrimination and are discouraged from seeking care for various reasons in both the early [1, 8] and late postnatal periods [9].…”

Women, children, and global public health: beyond the millennium development goals

“…Maternal mortality has fallen by 45% over the same period, from 380 to 210 per 100 000 live births, but this is some way short of the hoped for 75% reduction. 6 Perinatal HIV infection is now considered both preventable, as a result of the hugely successful mother to child transmission programmes, and treatable, owing to the development and refinement of highly active antiretroviral drugs. This was inconceivable when the goals were launched and has been catalysed by the philanthropy of drug companies manufacturing antiretroviral drugs.…”

Thinking beyond global neonatal mortality rates

“…2 To address this, the Every Newborn Action Plan has set out ambitious targets of ten or fewer neonatal deaths and ten or fewer stillbirths per 1000 births in every country by 2035, and interventions have been systematically reviewed and costed. 3,4 It is also now accepted that newborn health is a crucial component of the continuum of care incorporating reproductive, maternal, newborn and child and adolescent health (RMNCAH).…”