A Collaborative, Digital Response to Support Safer Childbirths During COVID-19
A Collaborative, Digital Response to Support Safer Childbirths During COVID-19

A Collaborative, Digital Response to Support Safer Childbirths During COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, women will continue to become pregnant and give birth, despite increased strain on health systems. That’s why we need to respond fast, and together, to safeguard the health of girls and women everywhere. The Safe Delivery App ꟷ a digital tool to equip midwives and other skilled birth attendants in low-resource settings to protect themselves, mothers and newborns from COVID-19 ꟷ is doing just that.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had and will continue to have direct and indirect consequences on the health, wellbeing, and lives of mothers and newborns. It is estimated that more women and newborns will suffer death, illness, or disability from indirect causes of the pandemic. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2013-16 showed a dramatic increase in maternal deaths because the health system was under too much pressure to fight the epidemic to provide quality care.  

In a situation like this, we need to respond fast – and we need to do it together so that history will not repeat itself. That is why Maternity Foundation, the University of Copenhagen, and Laerdal Global Health in collaboration with ICM and UNFPA partnered to develop and disseminate an immediate and digital response for healthcare personnel – to protect themselves, women, and newborns from COVID-19. 

Last week, we launched a COVID-19 module on the Safe Delivery App, which provides free visual, clinical, and practical guidance on how to handle the most common childbirth complications. Through the App, skilled birth attendants can now access key information, animated video instructions, and check lists to support them to limit the spread of COVID-19 in health facilities, including information on infection prevention, breastfeeding, and vertical transmission.  

The Safe Delivery App is used by skilled birth attendants in over 40 countries worldwide and works offline once downloaded. The new COVID-19 content is available in English, French , and Hindi, and the content is updated according to WHO guidelines. By building on an existing digital platform and by leveraging our global partners’ strong dissemination channels, we can make these essential guidelines available instantly – we can do it fast and we can reach far. 

In Moshi in northern Tanzania, senior nurse midwife at Mawenzi Regional Hospital, Anne Shuma, and her colleagues have just been introduced to the new COVID-19 module in the Safe Delivery App. The hospital is one of many in the country selected to receive COVID-19 patients, and preparations are in full motion to prepare isolation centers. At the time this was written, Tanzania had 24 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and but was preparing for the numbers to rise. 

Going through the module made us realize that we were not prepared to receive pregnant women with suspected COVID-19. Immediately, we prepared a delivery kit and brought it to the isolation center. We have now developed checklists based on the content in the App, so we are ready for when suspected cases come. It’s a very helpful tool for us midwives in an outbreak like this. It takes a concrete case and gives guidelines for handwashing and how to handle personal protective equipment. The App has opened our minds, we’re prepared now,” says Anne Shuma, who is training fellow midwives and nurses in nearby clinics and hospitals to use the App in their preparations for COVID-19. 

The COVID-19 module in the Safe Delivery App was developed within weeks – a process that normally takes months – possible only because of strong partnerships. Here is what partners are saying:

 Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director, UNFPA: 

  • “The enormity of the COVID-19 crisis and its consequences are testing us all. As essential frontline health care workers, midwives must be protected and prioritized so that they can continue providing quality care to women and their newborns during the pandemic. UNFPA is pleased to collaborate with Maternity Foundation, Laerdal, ICM, and the University of Copenhagen in developing innovative online resources to support midwives and other maternity care providers working in the field. These new digital tools will enable them to access the latest evidence-based approaches to care delivery in the context of COVID-19.” 

 Dr. Sally Pairman, CEO, ICM:

  • Many midwives have never had to work in pandemic situations before, and for everyone the coronavirus is new. In speaking with our Midwives’ Association members, we’ve been saddened by news of midwives dying from COVID-19, simply because they were not adequately protected from the virus or did not have proper information on how to protect themselves. The new modules in the Safe Delivery App will help guide midwives everywhere with advice they can count on.” 

Chairman of Laerdal Global Health, Tore Laerdal: 

  • Our mission has always been helping save lives and now it has come even closer. During these extraordinary days, we work even harder towards our mission. There are hundreds of thousands of health workers who heroically continue to work through challenging situations and are in need of all the support we can offer. We hope our manikins and simulation solutions will be the helping hand that will support them in providing safe and respectful care.”