The AYZH Clean Birth Kit targets the “six cleans” recognized by the World Health Organization: clean hands, clean perineum, clean delivery surface, clean cord cutting and tying instruments, and clean cutting surface. The kits are sourced and assembled in India by rural women to create economic opportunities for communities living in poverty. The packaging is biodegradable. The kit includes the following items:
* A sterile surface
* Sterilizing hand wipes
* Clamps for the umbilical cord
* Scalpel blade made of bamboo and handle for cutting the umbilical cord

The Problem

Each year, one-third of neonatal deaths worldwide (1.5 million) are due to infection (1), and many of them begin as umbilical cord infection. Simple preventive aseptic practices are not universally implemented. In 14 Latin American countries nearly 100 000 infant deaths of babies less than 1 year old were studied. Up to 16% of the deaths were due to infection (2), ranging between 31.3% in El Salvador and 7.5% in Costa Rica. Given the high range of institutional deliveries in the region (with the exception of 24.2% in Haiti) (3), cord infections should be preventable in most cases. WHO

The Evidence

Evaluation of the effectiveness of a clean delivery kit intervention in preventing
cord infection and puerperal sepsis among neonates and their mothers in rural
Mwanza Region, Tanzania

See the Innovation Index entry on the AYZH for more details on the need for clean birth kits.

To Order

Please send us an email if you are interested: orders@maternova.net.