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Focused Maternal Ultrasound by Midwives in Rural Zambia

Authors :
Kimberly, Heidi Harbison
Murray, Alice
Mennicke, Maria
Liteplo, Andrew
Lew, Jason
Bohan, J. Stephen
Tyer-Viola, Lynda
Ahn, Roy
Burke, Thomas
Noble, Vicki E.
Source :
Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology. Aug2010, Vol. 36 Issue 8, p1267-1272. 6p.
Publication Year :
2010

Abstract

Abstract: Point-of-care ultrasound is being increasingly implemented in resource-poor settings in an ad hoc fashion. We developed a focused maternal ultrasound-training program for midwives in a rural health district in Zambia. Four hundred forty-one scans were recorded by 21 midwives during the 6-month study period. In 74 scans (17%), the ultrasound findings prompted a change in clinical decision-making. Eight of the midwives were evaluated with a 14-question observed structured clinical examination (OSCE) and demonstrated a slight overall improvement with mean scores at 2 and 6 months of 10.0/14 (71%) and 11.6/14 (83%), respectively. Our pilot project demonstrates that midwives in rural Zambia can be trained to perform basic obstetric ultrasound and that it impacts clinical decision-making. Ultrasound skills were retained over the study period. More data is necessary to determine whether the introduction of ultrasound ultimately improves outcomes of pregnant women in rural Zambia. (E-mail: hkimberly@partners.org) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
03015629
Volume :
36
Issue :
8
Database :
Academic Search Index
Journal :
Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
52879262
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2010.05.017