QuEST researchers have launched a new study focused on developing and evaluating demand-side interventions to improve maternal health care quality in Côte d'Ivoire. This work is led by Emma Clarke-Deelder and Günther Fink from the Swiss Tropical & Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) and Siaka Koné and Bognan Koné from the Centre Suisse de Recherche Scientifique in Côte d'Ivoire (CSRS).

The study will begin with a pilot phase that includes qualitative interviews with patients and health care providers, as well as health facility assessments and direct observations of antenatal care. Then, informed by the pilot data, intervention ideas will be developed, tested, and refined through a participatory design process that engages pregnant women and health care providers in the study area. The aim is to develop two information interventions that can be delivered to pregnant women at the community level: a first intervention to improve access to high-quality antenatal care, and a second intervention to help inform decisions about delivery location. The interventions will be evaluated through two randomized controlled trials.

The study will be implemented in the catchment area of the Taabo Health & Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS), located in southeastern Côte d'Ivoire. It will be guided by an advisory panel comprised of national-level policymakers, local policymakers, and mothers of young children living in the study area.

Data collection tools for this study, including facility assessments and patient surveys, will be adapted from QuEST’s Maternal and Neonatal Health eCohort.

Results from the pilot study will be available in fall 2024. The launch of the first randomized controlled trial is anticipated in late 2024, and the launch of the second randomized controlled trial is anticipated in late 2025. The study will be completed in May 2027.

This study is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation.

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