Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Nov 25:9:777978.
doi: 10.3389/fped.2021.777978. eCollection 2021.

Effect of a Low-Dose/High-Frequency Training in Introducing a Nurse-Led Neonatal Advanced Life Support Service in a Referral Hospital in Ethiopia

Affiliations

Effect of a Low-Dose/High-Frequency Training in Introducing a Nurse-Led Neonatal Advanced Life Support Service in a Referral Hospital in Ethiopia

Misrak Tadesse et al. Front Pediatr. .

Abstract

Background and Objective: In Ethiopia, birth asphyxia causes ~30% of all neonatal deaths and 11-31% of deaths among neonates delivered in healthcare facilities that have breathing difficulty at birth. This study aimed to examine the impact of low-dose, high-frequency (LDHF) training for introducing a nurse-led neonatal advanced life support (NALS) service in a tertiary care hospital in Ethiopia. Methods: Through a retrospective cohort study, a total of 12,001 neonates born post-implementation of the NALS service (between June 2017 and March 2019) were compared to 2,066 neonates born before its implementation (between June 2016 and September 2016). Based on when the neonates were born, they were divided into six groups (groups A to F). All deliveries occurred in the inpatient Labor and Delivery Unit (LDU) at St. Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College. The number of neonatal deaths in the LDU, neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission rate, and proportion of neonates with normal axillary temperature (36.5-37.5°C) within the first hour of life were evaluated. Data were analyzed using the χ2 test, and p-values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Following the implementation of the NALS service, semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders were conducted to evaluate their perception of the service; the interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded for thematic analysis. Results: There was a decrease in the proportion of neonates who died in the LDU (from 3.5 to 1%) during the immediate post-implementation period, followed by a sustained decrease over the study period (p < 0.001). The change in the NICU admission rate (from 22.8 to 21.2%) was insignificant (p = 0.6) during this initial period. However, this was followed by a significant sustained decrease (7.8% in group E and 9.8% in group F, p < 0.001). The proportion of newborns with normal axillary temperature improved from 46.2% during the initial post-implementation period to 87.8% (p < 0.01); this proportion further increased to 99.8%. The program was perceived positively by NALS team members, NICU care providers, and hospital administrators. Conclusion: In resource-limited settings, LDHF training for neonatal resuscitation improves the neonatal resuscitation skills and management of delivery room attendants.

Keywords: Ethiopia; delivery room; global health; low-and middleincome countries; low-dose high-frequency training; neonatal mortality; neonatal resuscitation; quality improvement.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as potential conflicts of interest. Wax and Gold, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit volunteer-based organization working in Ethiopia in education and capacity building to improve newborn healthcare. It has no paid staff, and all its members and founders are volunteers.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Standardized data collection form.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Timeline of project design, implementation, and study.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Neonatal death rate in the inpatient LDU and NICU admission rate before and after the implementation of the NALS service. Both fell significantly between groups A and C (p < 0.001) and were sustained further between groups D and F.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. World Health Organization: WHO . Newborns: Reducing Mortality. Who.int.Published September 19. (2019). Available online at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/newbornsreducing-mortality (accessed September 2, 2021).
    1. Neonatal mortality – UNICEF DATA . UNICEF Data. (2018). Available online at: https://data.unicef.org/topic/child-survival/neonatal-mortality/ (accessed September 4, 2021).
    1. Usman F, Imam A, Farouk ZL, Dayyabu AL. Newborn mortality in sub-saharan africa: why is perinatal asphyxia still a major cause? Ann Glob Health. (2019) 85:112. 10.5334/aogh.2541 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ethiopia: Mini Demographic and Health Survey . (2019). Available online at: https://dhsprogram.com/publications/publication-FR363-DHS-Final-Reports.cfm (accessed September 1, 2021).
    1. Demisse AG, Alemu F, Gizaw MA, Tigabu Z. Patterns of admission and factors associated with neonatal mortality among neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of university of gondar hospital, northwest Ethiopia. Pediatr Health Med Ther. (2017) 8:57–64. 10.2147/PHMT.S130309 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources