ObjectiveTo generate a global reference for caesarean section (CS) rates at health facilities.DesignCross‐sectional study.SettingHealth facilities from 43 countries.Population/SampleThirty eight thousand three hundred and twenty‐four women giving birth from 22 countries for model building and 10 045 875 women giving birth from 43 countries for model testing.MethodsWe hypothesised that mathematical models could determine the relationship between clinical‐obstetric characteristics and CS. These models generated probabilities of CS that could be compared with the observed CS rates. We devised a three‐step approach to generate the global benchmark of CS rates at health facilities: creation of a multi‐country reference population, building mathematical models, and testing these models.Main outcome measuresArea under the ROC curves, diagnostic odds ratio, expected CS rate, observed CS rate.ResultsAccording to the different versions of the model, areas under the ROC curves suggested a good discriminatory capacity of C‐Model, with summary estimates ranging from 0.832 to 0.844. The C‐Model was able to generate expected CS rates adjusted for the case‐mix of the obstetric population. We have also prepared an e‐calculator to facilitate use of C‐Model (www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/maternal_perinatal_health/c-model/en/).ConclusionsThis article describes the development of a global reference for CS rates. Based on maternal characteristics, this tool was able to generate an individualised expected CS rate for health facilities or groups of health facilities. With C‐Model, obstetric teams, health system managers, health facilities, health insurance companies, and governments can produce a customised reference CS rate for assessing use (and overuse) of CS.Tweetable abstractThe C‐Model provides a customized benchmark for caesarean section rates in health facilities and systems.

BackgroundThe partograph is currently the main tool available to support decision-making of health professionals during labour. However, the rate of appropriate use of the partograph is disappointingly low. Apart from limitations that are associated with partograph use, evidence of positive impact on labour-related health outcomes is lacking. The main goal of this study is to develop a Simplified, Effective, Labour Monitoring-to-Action (SELMA) tool. The primary objectives are: to identify the essential elements of intrapartum monitoring that trigger the decision to use interventions aimed at preventing poor labour outcomes; to develop a simplified, monitoring-to-action algorithm for labour management; and to compare the diagnostic performance of SELMA and partograph algorithms as tools to identify women who are likely to develop poor labour-related outcomes.Methods/DesignA prospective cohort study will be conducted in eight health facilities in Nigeria and Uganda (four facilities from each country). All women admitted for vaginal birth will comprise the study population (estimated sample size: 7,812 women). Data will be collected on maternal characteristics on admission, labour events and pregnancy outcomes by trained research assistants at the participating health facilities. Prediction models will be developed to identify women at risk of intrapartum-related perinatal death or morbidity (primary outcomes) throughout the course of labour. These predictions models will be used to assemble a decision-support tool that will be able to suggest the best course of action to avert adverse outcomes during the course of labour. To develop this set of prediction models, we will use up-to-date techniques of prognostic research, including identification of important predictors, assigning of relative weights to each predictor, estimation of the predictive performance of the model through calibration and discrimination, and determination of its potential for application using internal validation techniques.DiscussionThis research offers an opportunity to revisit the theoretical basis of the partograph. It is envisioned that the final product would help providers overcome the challenging tasks of promptly interpreting complex labour information and deriving appropriate clinical actions, and thus increase efficiency of the care process, enhance providers’ competence and ultimately improve labour outcomes.Please see related articles ‘http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12978-015-0027-6’ and ‘http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12978-015-0028-5’.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12978-015-0029-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

A consolidação da Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) requer políticas públicas embasadas por evidências científicas. Este artigo apresenta o estudo ELECT, cujo objetivo foi identificar temas prioritários de pesquisa para a fortalecimento da APS no estado de São Paulo, Brasil. Com a participação de especialistas e de um grupo focal com usuários, foi obtida uma lista com os vinte principais obstáculos, bem como dez temas de pesquisa prioritários, na APS. Os resultados apontam para problemas e temas de pesquisas relacionados à: organização da gestão, capacitação de profissionais e gestores, valorização profissional, criação de mecanismos de colaboração entre equipes de saúde e informatização dos recursos. Espera-se, assim, estimular o debate no contexto da APS sobre o papel da priorização de pesquisas, seus obstáculos e proposições de pesquisa. Almeja-se, também, estimular a adoção de modelos mais participativos de seleção de temas de pesquisa.

RESUMO O Acesso Avançado (AA) é um formato de organização de agenda em unidades de saúde na Atenção Primária à Saúde que prega a máxima ‘Faça hoje o trabalho de hoje!’. Ele busca ativamente reduzir a demanda reprimida de atendimentos, reduzir o absenteísmo e ampliar o acesso aos usuários do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). O objetivo deste trabalho foi relatar aspectos da implementação do AA em uma Unidade de Saúde da Família (USF). Foram realizadas entrevistas com os profissionais da USF acerca do AA e, de forma preliminar, foram utilizados os dados do Sistema de Informação de Atenção Básica (Siab), do E-SUS e das agendas físicas, para comparação numérica de alguns parâmetros entre antes e depois da implantação e implementação do AA.

Improved understanding of multimorbidity (MM) treatment adherence in primary health care (PHC) in Brazil is needed to achieve better healthcare and service outcomes. This study explored experiences of healthcare providers (HCP) and primary care patients (PCP) with mental-physical MM treatment adherence. Adults PCP with mental-physical MM and their primary care and community mental health care providers were recruited through maximum variation sampling from nine cities in São Paulo State, Southeast of Brazil. Experiences across quality domains of the Primary Care Assessment Tool-Brazil were explored through semi-structured in-depth interviews with 19 PCP and 62 HCP, conducted between April 2016 and April 2017. Through thematic conent analysis ten meta-themes concerning treatment adherence were developed: 1) variability and accessibility of treatment options available through PHC; 2) importance of coming to terms with a disease for treatment initation; 3) importance of person-centred communication for treatment initiation and maintenance; 4) information sources about received medication; 5) monitoring medication adherence; 6) taking medication unsafely; 7) perceived reasons for medication non-adherence; 8) most challenging health behavior change goals; 9) main motives for initiation or maintenance of treatment; 10) methods deployed to improve treatment adherence. Our analysis has advanced the understanding of complexity inherent to treatment adherence in mental-physical MM and revealed opportunities for improvement and specific solutions to effect adherence in Brazil. Our findings can inform research efforts to transform MM care through optimization.

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Objective: To evaluate whether a short compilation of screening tools for specific disorders could identify Mental or Emotional Disorders (MEDs) in the general population. Methods: We selected validated screening tools for the most prevalent MEDs. In order to be selected, these tools should maintain the psychometric properties of the complete instrument with a reduced number of items. These instruments were: Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-2 (GAD-2), item 3 of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), and three items on the Adolescent Psychotic-Like Symptom Screener (APSS-3). We called this compilation of screening tools Mini Screening for Mental Disorders (Mini-SMD). The study was divided in two phases. Firstly, 545 subjects were interviewed with the Mini-SMD and COOP/WONCA-Feelings at their residences. Subsequently, subjects who had agreed to participate (230) were reinterviewed with Mini-SMD, COOP/WONCA-Feelings and MINI interview. Test-retest reliability was calculated by Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated for the analysis of discriminative validity. Concurrent validity was calculated by analyzing the correlation between Mini-SMD and COOP/WONCA-Feelings. Results: The joint administration of screening tools for specific disorders showed sensitivities that ranged from 0.76 to 0.88 and specificities from 0.67 to 0.85. The ICC value for the total score of Mini-SMD was 0.78. The area under the curve was 0.84, with a sensitivity of 0.74 and specificity of 0.76 (for a cutoff ≥ 4). Conclusion: This study showed that a short compilation of screening tools for specific disorders can detect MEDs in general population.