The pregnancy-related mortality rate in the US exceeds that of other developed nations and is marked by significant disparities in outcome by race. This article reviews the evidence supporting the implementation of a variety of best practices designed to reduce maternal mortality. Evidence from maternal mortality review committees suggests that delays in diagnosis, delays in initiation of treatment and use of ineffective treatments contribute to preventable cases of maternal death. We review several protocols for maternal warning signs that have been used successfully to facilitate early identification and intervention. Care bundles, a collection of best practices, have been developed and implemented to address several maternal emergencies. We review the evidence that supports reduction in adverse outcomes with consistent implementation of obstetric hemorrhage and severe hypertension bundles in a collaborative, team-based setting. The article concludes with suggestions for the future.

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This study demonstrated the value of a patient database listing lot numbers of all medications and components used in each routine ECP procedure for facilitating rapid determination of common patient exposures, making it easier to determine the cause of adverse events, in this case, a particular lot of heparin responsible for the hypotensive adverse events.