Postnatal Care Coverage - Newborns

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

Collect the following data by conducting individual interviews with mothers of a representative sample of newborns that were delivered in the past 12 months:

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

Q1: In the past 12 months, did you give birth to a child that was alive when it was born?

A1: yes / no / won’t say

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

Q2: In the days after you delivered your youngest child, did any health care provider check on her/his health, either at a health facility, home or another place?

A2: _

1) yes

2) no

3) the child died less than 2 days after delivery (and before anyone checked its health)

4) does not remember 

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

Q3: How long after the delivery did the first check take place?

A3: _

1) within two days after birth

2) more than 2 days after birth

3) does not remember

Q4: Who checked the baby's health at that time?

A4: _

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 newborns who received a postpartum health check from a trained health worker within two days after the birth by the total number of surveyed newborns (exclude those whose mothers 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 (one, two, three, four …).

1) Define in advance what a “trained” community health worker means. Ensure that the data collectors are able to determine whether the community health worker 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.