Toolkit for Improving Perinatal Safety

AHRQ’s new Toolkit for Improving Perinatal Safety helps hospitals to reduce maternal and neonatal harm that may result from poor communication and system failures.

The customizable toolkit for improving perinatal safety supports labor and delivery unit implementation of three pillars: teamwork and communication skills, perinatal safety strategies, and in situ simulation training. The toolkit builds on the collective knowledge gained from AHRQ’s work in TeamSTEPPS®, Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program, safety culture surveys, and simulation. In addition, the toolkit helps labor and delivery units improve patient safety, team communication, and quality of care for mothers and their newborns. Resources in the toolkit were developed, tested, and informed by the field through an implementation project that included 46 labor and delivery units across the country.

Program design, implementation support, and evaluation were provided by a national team comprised of staff from AHRQ, RTI International, and the National Perinatal Information Center, as well as expert clinical faculty from a variety of organizations.

Select to access the Toolkit for Improving Perinatal Safety.