Publication: Improving Monitoring Data Systems to Count and Account for Stillbirths
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2022-08
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2022-09-27
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Each year, globally, nearly 2 million pregnancies result in stillbirths. Almost half (42 percent) of all stillbirths occur during labor. Yet, stillbirth rates are generally not considered when assessing the impact of poor quality antenatal and intrapartum care. One of the reasons is that the availability of stillbirth data is still very limited in low, and middle-income countries (LMICs), where 84 percent of stillbirths occur. Many national data systems in LMICs do not record stillbirths, or the stillbirth data are unusable due to nonstandard definitions, inaccurate classification, or underreporting. Not counting the millions of stillbirths annually in the Global Financing Facility (GFF)-supported countries is a missed opportunity for measuring impact and return on investments. If Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP) stillbirth target of 12/1,000 births were reached across the 37 GFF-supported countries, over 500,000 stillbirths will be averted each year based on 2019 estimates. The GFF commissioned this report to improve the monitoring and reporting of stillbirths for the 37 GFF-supported countries and to inform other LMIC governments, including those supported by the World Bank and other development partners. The objectives of the report are to: (i) synthesize challenges and enablers that modify routine stillbirth reporting in LMICs; (ii) synthesize the current landscape of stillbirth reporting across the countries with which the GFF partners; and (iii) provide guidance to the GFF, the World Bank, and other development planners on improving reporting of stillbirths.
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“Holschneider, Silvia; Morgan, Alison. Lutalo, Martin, editors. 2022. Improving Monitoring Data Systems to Count and Account for Stillbirths. Health, Nutrition, and Population Discussion Paper;. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/38068 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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