International collaboration to improve perinatal practices in Eastern and Central Europe

The ongoing successful partnership between WHO/EURO and Eastern Europe JSI projects, specially the Maternal and Infant Health Project (MIHP) in Ukraine, supports the development of new training package on Effective Perinatal Care for health care providers, adapted for post-Soviet healthcare systems. USAID-funded JSI/MIHP in Ukraine was concerned about the poor quality of perinatal care provided to mother and baby. To improve it, heath care providers needed training in internationally accepted standards, thus MIHP established close cooperation with the MPS initiative in WHO/EURO in 2003. This collaboration started in Russia and Ukraine using the expertise of international consultants and WHO recommended MPS training materials, developed in real partnership as strengths of both sides were equally represented in joint activities. Accumulating experience of international and local trainers in Ukraine and other NIS countries enabled to establish a WHO/JSI working group to develop a new training package covering the full cycle of effective evidence-based antenatal, perinatal, postpartum care. The training package builds on solid scientific basis provided by WHO-supported researches, and lessons learnt in implementing JSI/MCH projects in Eastern Europe. JSI and WHO/EURO cooperation led to: -Comprehensive training package on Effective Perinatal Care developed and pre-tested in Ukraine and Georgia. -UNICEF, POLICY project, PATH, SWISS Cooperation , and local NGOs demonstrated their willingness to use the training package; -WHO and JSI decided to continue cooperation producing didactic videos on MCH; -Private Oil Company TNK-BP obligated $1.2 million fostering implementation of Effective Perinatal Care in the East of Ukraine. Impact of Partnership: The Partnership between WHO and JSI which resulted in this new training package brought considerable changes in perinatal care to Ukraine, Russia, Georgia, and other NIS countries: -Ukraine: the trainings decreased the rates of: episiotomies - from over 25% to 7%; C-sections from 27% to 16%. In Georgia, the level of C-section dropped from 47 % to 8%, episiotomies decreased from 36% to 12%; -MoH of Ukraine issued a special order that the new JSI/WHO training package will be strongly used in all MCH settings. The Kirgiz MoH issued a similar order.