WHO Releases New Safe Childbirth Checklist
The new clinical tool helps medical teams follow 29 essential practices to improve safety during labor and delivery.
Updated on Oct. 15, 2026 in Pregnancy
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The World Health Organization (WHO) released a standardized Safe Childbirth Checklist to help clinical staff address common complications during delivery. This tool is designed to improve quality of care and reduce preventable maternal and newborn mortality during the labor process.
Why it matters
Most maternal and newborn deaths remain preventable, yet poor quality of care at many health facilities continues to drive high mortality rates. This checklist provides a systematic bedside tool to ensure medical teams consistently follow life-saving best practices.
The checklist tracks 29 recommended clinical practices across four specific pause points during labor and delivery. Field testing in Karnataka State, India, demonstrated an increase in adherence to these practices from 10 to 25 items.
The players
World Health Organization
The international public health agency that develops evidence-based guidelines and safety tools for clinical facilities.
The details
Health workers utilize the checklist by pausing at four critical intervals: upon admission, before pushing, within one hour after birth, and before discharge. This bedside tool synthesizes evidence-based guidelines to prevent common causes of mortality, including hemorrhage, infection, obstructed labor, preeclampsia, and asphyxia, ensuring that care teams do not skip essential steps during high-stress deliveries.
Timeline
2012-2015: Groups from 29 countries participated in the checklist collaboration.
2016-2030: Global Sustainable Development Goals aim to reduce preventable deaths.
2017: Scheduled completion of the BetterBirth randomized controlled trial.
The Home Front
This standardization of delivery protocols aligns with global efforts to meet the maternal mortality targets set by the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. It shifts the focus from reactive emergency intervention to a proactive, checklist-driven culture of safety in birth centers.
Expectant parents should feel empowered to ask their delivery team about the specific safety protocols and checklists used during labor. Understanding how your chosen facility manages common complications like hemorrhage or infection can provide valuable peace of mind during your birth plan.
The takeaway
Using a standardized checklist ensures that essential clinical steps are not missed during the critical hours of childbirth. Families can advocate for their safety by confirming that their chosen health facility utilizes systematic, evidence-based tools for labor and delivery.
What happens next
The BetterBirth randomized controlled trial in Uttar Pradesh, India, is scheduled to conclude in 2017, providing further evidence on the clinical impact of the checklist.
Further reading
For more information on clinical protocols and maternal care standards, visit our Pregnancy section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Who.
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