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Medical Abortion Provided by Nurse-Midwives or Physicians in a High Resource Setting: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

ABSTRACT: The objective of the present study is to calculate the cost-effectiveness of early medical abortion performed by nurse-midwifes in comparison to physicians in a high resource setting where ultrasound dating is part of the protocol. Non-physician health care professionals have previously been shown to provide medical abortion as effectively and safely as physicians, but the cost-effectiveness of such task shifting remains to be established.A cost effectiveness analysis was conducted based on data from a previously published randomized-controlled equivalence study including 1180 healthy women randomized to the standard procedure, early medical abortion provided by physicians, or the intervention, provision by nurse-midwifes. A 1.6% risk difference for efficacy defined as complete abortion without surgical interventions in favor of midwife provision was established which means that for every 100 procedures, the intervention treatment resulted in 1.6 fewer incomplete abortions needing surgical intervention than the standard treatment. The average direct and indirect costs and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) were calculated. The study was conducted at a university hospital in Stockholm, Sweden.The average direct costs per procedure were EUR 45 for the intervention compared to EUR 58.3 for the standard procedure. Both the cost and the efficacy of the intervention were superior to the standard treatment resulting in a negative ICER at EUR -831 based on direct costs and EUR -1769 considering total costs per surgical intervention avoided.Early medical abortion provided by nurse-midwives is more cost-effective than provision by physicians. This evidence provides clinicians and decision makers with an important tool that may influence policy and clinical practice and eventually increase numbers of abortion providers and reduce one barrier to women's access to safe abortion.

SUBMITTER: Sjostrom S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4928948 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Medical Abortion Provided by Nurse-Midwives or Physicians in a High Resource Setting: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

Sjöström Susanne S Kopp Kallner Helena H Simeonova Emilia E Madestam Andreas A Gemzell-Danielsson Kristina K

PloS one 20160630 6

<h4>Objective</h4>The objective of the present study is to calculate the cost-effectiveness of early medical abortion performed by nurse-midwifes in comparison to physicians in a high resource setting where ultrasound dating is part of the protocol. Non-physician health care professionals have previously been shown to provide medical abortion as effectively and safely as physicians, but the cost-effectiveness of such task shifting remains to be established.<h4>Study design</h4>A cost effectivene ...[more]

PMID: 27362270

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Project description:BackgroundA large proportion of abortion-related mortality and morbidity occurs in the second trimester of pregnancy. The Uganda Ministry of Health policy restricts management of second-trimester incomplete abortion to physicians who are few and unequally distributed, with most practicing in urban regions. Unsafe and outdated methods like sharp curettage are frequently used. Medical management of second-trimester post-abortion care by midwives offers an advantage given the difficulty in providing surgical management in low-income settings and current health worker shortages. The study aims to assess the safety, effectiveness and acceptability of treatment of incomplete second-trimester abortion using misoprostol provided by midwives compared with physicians.MethodsA randomized controlled equivalence trial implemented at eight hospitals and health centers in Central Uganda will include 1192 eligible women with incomplete abortion of uterine size > 12 weeks up to 18 weeks. Each participant will be randomly assigned to undergo a clinical assessment and treatment by either a midwife (intervention arm) or a physician (control arm). Enrolled participants will receive 400 μg misoprostol administered sublingually every 3 h up to five doses within 24 h at the health facility until a complete abortion is confirmed. Women who do not achieve complete abortion within 24 h will undergo surgical uterine evacuation. Pre discharge, participants will receive contraceptive counseling and information on what to expect in terms of side effects and signs of complications, with follow-up 14 days later to assess secondary outcomes. Analyses will be by intention to treat. Background characteristics and outcomes will be presented using descriptive statistics. Differences between groups will be analyzed using risk difference (95% confidence interval) and equivalence established if this lies between the predefined range of - 5% and + 5%. Chi-square tests will be used for comparison of outcome and t tests used to compare mean values. P ≤ 0.05 will be considered statistically significant.DiscussionOur study will provide evidence to inform national and international policies, standard care guidelines and training program curricula on treatment of second-trimester incomplete abortion for improved access.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03622073 . Registered on 9 August 2018.

Project description:ObjectiveTo assess the effectiveness of midwives administering misoprostol to women with incomplete abortion seeking post-abortion care (PAC), compared with physicians.DesignA multicentre randomised controlled equivalence trial. The study was not masked.SettingsGynaecological departments in two hospitals in a low-resource setting, Kenya.PopulationWomen (n=1094) with incomplete abortion in the first trimester, seeking PAC between 1 June 2013 to 31 May 2016. Participants were randomly assigned to receive treatment from midwives or physicians. 409 and 401 women in the midwife and physician groups, respectively, were included in the per-protocol analysis.Interventions600 µg misoprostol orally, and contraceptive counselling by a physician or midwife.Main outcome measuresComplete abortion not needing surgical intervention within 7-10 days. The main outcome was analysed on the per-protocol population with a generalised estimating equation model. The predefined equivalence range was -4% to 4%. Secondary outcomes were analysed descriptively.ResultsThe proportion of complete abortion was 94.8% (768/810): 390 (95.4%) in the midwife group and 378 (94.3%) in the physician group. The proportion of incomplete abortion was 5.2% (42/810), similarly distributed between midwives and physicians. The model-based risk difference for midwives versus physicians was 1.0% (-4.1 to 2.2). Most women felt safe (97%; 779/799), and 93% (748/801) perceived the treatment as expected/easier than expected. After contraceptive counselling the uptake of a contraceptive method after 7-10 days occurred in 76% (613/810). No serious adverse events were recorded.ConclusionsTreatment of incomplete abortion with misoprostol provided by midwives is equally effective, safe and accepted by women as when administered by physicians in a low-resource setting. Systematically provided contraceptive counselling in PAC is effective to mitigate unmet need for contraception.Trial registration numberNCT01865136; Results.

Project description:BackgroundEarly first-trimester medical abortion (MA) service (≤ 63 days) has been provided by doctors and nurses under doctors' supervision since 2009 in Nepal. This paper assesses whether MA services provided by specifically trained and certified nurses and auxiliary nurse-midwives independently from doctors' supervision, is considered as satisfactory by women as those provided by doctors.MethodsThe data come from a multi-center, randomized, controlled equivalence trial conducted between April 2009 and March 2010 in five district hospitals in Nepal. Women seeking MA were randomly assigned to doctors or nurses and auxiliary nurse-midwives(ANMs).Eligible women were administered 200 mg mifepristone orally followed by 800 μg misoprostol vaginally two days later by their assigned providers and followed up 10-14 days later. At the follow-up visit women's reported satisfaction with MA service they received was measured.ResultsOf 1295 women screened for eligibility, 535 were randomly assigned to a doctor and 542 to a nurse or ANM. Nineteen women were lost-to-follow up in the former group and 27 were lost-to-follow up or did not complete the acceptability interview in the latter group. This study is, therefore, based on516womenin the doctor's group and 515 women in the nurse or ANM group. All women in the nurse or ANM group reported being satisfied or highly satisfied by MA compared to 99% in the doctor's group. Satisfaction was similar regardless of the type of provider; 38% among nurse or ANM and 35% among the doctor group were "highly satisfied", and 62% and 64%, respectively, were "satisfied". Women's experiences such as 'less than expected amount or duration of bleeding following MA', 'shorter than expected duration of the abortion process', and 'able to manage symptoms', were found to be associated with women's higher satisfaction with MA. Counseling and information on the method, potential complications of MA and post-abortion contraception was nearly universal. No statistically significant differences were found in the level of satisfaction by age, parity, marital status, education or occupation of women.ConclusionsWomen's satisfaction with MA service provided by trained nurses or auxiliary nurse-midwives was similar to that provided by doctors. The findings, therefore, provide support for extending safe and accessible medical abortion services by government-trained nurses and auxiliary nurse midwives to women seeking early first trimester pregnancy termination.Trial registrationThe trial was retrospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier: NCT01186302 ). Registered August 20, 2010.

Project description:ObjectiveTo compare outcomes before and after implementation of medical abortion (termination of pregnancy) without ultrasound via telemedicine.DesignCohort analysis.SettingThe three main abortion providers.Population or sampleMedical abortions at home at ≤69 days' gestation in two cohorts: traditional model (in-person with ultrasound, n = 22 158) from January to March 2020 versus telemedicine-hybrid model (either in person or via telemedicine without ultrasound, n = 29 984, of whom 18 435 had no-test telemedicine) between April and June 2020. Sample (n = 52 142) comprises 85% of all medical abortions provided nationally.MethodsData from electronic records and incident databases were used to compare outcomes between cohorts, adjusted for baseline differences.Main outcome measuresTreatment success, serious adverse events, waiting times, gestation at treatment, acceptability.ResultsMean waiting time from referral to treatment was 4.2 days shorter in the telemedicine-hybrid model and more abortions were provided at ≤6 weeks' gestation (40% versus 25%, P < 0.001). Treatment success (98.8% versus 98.2%, P > 0.999), serious adverse events (0.02% versus 0.04%, P = 0.557) and incidence of ectopic pregnancy (0.2% versus 0.2%, P = 0.796) were not different between models. In the telemedicine-hybrid model, 0.04% were estimated to be over 10 weeks' gestation at the time of the abortion; all were completed safely at home. Within the telemedicine-hybrid model, effectiveness was higher with telemedicine than in-person care (99.2% versus 98.1%, P < 0.001). Acceptability of telemedicine was high (96% satisfied) and 80% reported a future preference for telemedicine.ConclusionsA telemedicine-hybrid model for medical abortion that includes no-test telemedicine and treatment without an ultrasound is effective, safe, acceptable and improves access to care.Tweetable abstractCompelling evidence from 52 142 women shows no-test telemedicine abortion is safe, effective and improves care.

Project description:BackgroundStudies evaluating acceptability of simplified follow-up after medical abortion have focused on high-resource or urban settings where telephones, road connections, and modes of transport are available and where women have formal education.ObjectiveTo investigate women's acceptability of home-assessment of abortion and whether acceptability of medical abortion differs by in-clinic or home-assessment of abortion outcome in a low-resource setting in India.DesignSecondary outcome of a randomised, controlled, non-inferiority trial.SettingOutpatient primary health care clinics in rural and urban Rajasthan, India.PopulationWomen were eligible if they sought abortion with a gestation up to 9 weeks, lived within defined study area and agreed to follow-up. Women were ineligible if they had known contraindications to medical abortion, haemoglobin < 85 mg/l and were below 18 years.MethodsAbortion outcome assessment through routine clinic follow-up by a doctor was compared with home-assessment using a low-sensitivity pregnancy test and a pictorial instruction sheet. A computerized random number generator generated the randomisation sequence (1:1) in blocks of six. Research assistants randomly allocated eligible women who opted for medical abortion (mifepristone and misoprostol), using opaque sealed envelopes. Blinding during outcome assessment was not possible.Main outcome measuresWomen's acceptability of home-assessment was measured as future preference of follow-up. Overall satisfaction, expectations, and comparison with previous abortion experiences were compared between study groups.Results731 women were randomized to the clinic follow-up group (n = 353) or home-assessment group (n = 378). 623 (85%) women were successfully followed up, of those 597 (96%) were satisfied and 592 (95%) found the abortion better or as expected, with no difference between study groups. The majority, 355 (57%) women, preferred home-assessment in the event of a future abortion. Significantly more women, 284 (82%), in the home-assessment group preferred home-assessment in the future, as compared with 188 (70%) of women in the clinic follow-up group, who preferred clinic follow-up in the future (p < 0.001).ConclusionHome-assessment is highly acceptable among women in low-resource, and rural, settings. The choice to follow-up an early medical abortion according to women's preference should be offered to foster women's reproductive autonomy.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT01827995.

Dataset Information

Medical Abortion Provided by Nurse-Midwives or Physicians in a High Resource Setting: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

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Medical Abortion Provided by Nurse-Midwives or Physicians in a High Resource Setting: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

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