Postnatal Care Coverage - Women

The indicator assesses the proportion of mothers who were provided with postnatal care by qualified health personnel – an effective measure for reducing maternal morbidity and mortality.

Collect the following data by conducting individual interviews with a representative sample of women aged 15 – 49 years who in the past 12 months delivered a live child:

RECOMMENDED SURVEY QUESTIONS (Q) AND POSSIBLE ANSWERS (A)

Q1: In the days after you delivered your youngest child, did any health care provider check on your health, either at a health facility, home or another place?

A1: yes / no / does not remember

(ask the following question only if the previous answer is YES)

Q2: How long after the delivery did the first check take place?

A2: _

1) within two days after birth

2) more than 2 days after birth

3) does not remember

Q3: Who checked your health at that time?

A3: _

1) doctor / nurse / midwife

2) trained community health worker

3) trained traditional birth attendant

4) untrained community health worker

5) untrained traditional birth attendant

6) relative / friend / other unqualified person

7) does not remember

Note: As “trained health worker” count responses 1, 2 and 3.

To calculate the indicator’s value, divide the number of respondents who received a postpartum health check from a trained health worker within two days after the birth by the total number of interviewed respondents (exclude those who did not remember). Multiply the result by 100 to convert it to a percentage.

Disaggregate the data by location (rural/urban), place of delivery (home, health centre, hospital) and socio-economic characteristics (education level, wealth quintile) and the number of respondent’s children (none, one, two, three, four …).

1) Use the following two questions to assess whether the respondent is “aged 15 – 49 years and had a live birth in the last 12 months”:

Q: What is your age?

A: specify: ______ / won’t say

Q: In the past 12 months, did you give birth to a child that was alive when it was born?

A: yes / no / won’t say

2) Define in advance what a “trained” community health worker/ TBA means. Ensure that the data collectors are able to determine whether the community health worker/ TBA who visited the respondent was trained or not (the local health authorities should be able to provide this data). If required, adjust the response options.