Implementing INTERGROWTH-21st Tools at Jacaranda Health
The Maternal Health Task Force (MHTF) is collaborating with Jacaranda Health in Kenya, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and support from the University of Oxford’s Maternal and Perinatal Health Institute, to conduct the first implementation research study of the new, globally-validated INTERGROWTH-21st standards.
The tools being evaluated through a mixed method design include the use of: (1) ultrasounds to estimate gestational age in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy and track fetal growth; and (2) new newborn size at birth growth charts for head circumference, length and weight used to determine appropriateness for gestational age.
The findings and insights from this study will inform their global implementation to improve identification and management of high-risk pregnancies and fetal and newborn growth, as well as the ability to compare growth across ethnicities and global populations. The study will evaluate the barriers and facilitators of implementing the standards in a low-resource setting, the effects on clinical decision-making and client and provider satisfaction and acceptability.
Read the study protocol:
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Read more about MHTF’s collaboration with the INTERGROWTH-21st study.
Learn more about INTERGROWTH-21st on the project’s website.