High Risk Pregnancy Toolkit
Our goal is to reduce maternal mortality in fragile settings by empowering women and health workers.
According to international literature, up to 20% of pregnancies are at risk and 99% of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries. The challenge, particularly in fragile environments, is to identify these 20% earliest, to reduce maternal and infant mortality. Our toolkit comprises 1) a portable set of cards, showing a range of high risk symptoms during pregnancy 2) “Heart for 2” fetoscope & abdominal palpation guide to support both professional & lay healthcare workers, and women living in fragile environments: to identify high risk pregnancies for earlier referral to healthcare facilities to educate & raise awareness on practices for healthy pregnancies to allow both expectant mothers and health workers to hear the baby's heartbeat together for a unique experience In 2018, the ICRC deployed 2350 sets of referral cards in 6 African countries, which have been monitored to assess impact. In 2019, the ICRC will also conduct trial of the “Heart for 2” fetoscope in the field.