Pregnancy surveillance outlines a plan to conduct surveillance among women of reproductive age in the catchment areas of the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Network. The surveillance guides life-saving maternal and child health interventions through comprehensive, accurate, and timely identification of pregnancies and their outcomes in CHAMPS catchment areas with accompanying epidemiologic data collection.
A pregnancy surveillance in the catchment areas started as a part of CHAMPS, with the goal to have a better registration of pregnancies in the Catchment areas, link the mothers to ANC and improve the attendance and quality of ANC by providing ultrasounds and strengthening the ANC service as well as increase the percentage of institutional deliveries in the sites.
Pregnancy surveillance will improve timely detection of stillbirths and neonatal deaths for possible enrolment in CHAMPS mortality procedures, as well as identify pregnancy complications or limitations in obstetric care that can lead to poor outcomes for both pregnant women and their babies. Ultimately, identifying and addressing the factors linked to poor pregnancy outcomes can improve survival in CHAMPS areas and in other high-mortality settings.