Obstetrics And Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Construction

BACKGROUND

Jordan has made considerable progress in improving maternal and child health outcomes. For example, in recent decades, Jordan has cut the under-five mortality rate by almost half and reduced the infant mortality rate by more than 40%. However, significant challenges remain and are exacerbated by a declining national health budget, a growing population, a large influx of refugees due to regional conflicts, and aging and overcrowded health facilities.

PROJECT OVERVIEWS

To help Jordan overcome these challenges, USAID is launching two new construction projects, focused on the expansion and renovation of the Obstetric Department and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Maternity and Pediatric Hospital at Al Bashir Hospitals, a Ministry of Health facility, and a new, standalone Obstetric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Hospital at the King Hussein Medical City, a Royal Medical Services facility. These are two of the largest health facilities in the country, and these departments accommodate an average of 26,000 deliveries annually, representing almost 16% of deliveries in Jordan.

To meet the needs of future generations, USAID took population growth and additional community needs into consideration while planning the design through an extensive needs assessment. The construction, expansion, and renovation projects will boost the overall service delivery capacity of the hospital’s maternal and neonate services by 40 percent, including a 50 percent increase in hospital beds and a 120 percent increase in incubators. USAID is developing an agreement with the Government of Jordan and the Royal Medical Services to ensure a proper plan is in place for staff recruitment and training as well as long term facility maintenance.

EXPECTED OUTCOMES

• Increase the overall capacity and modernize the health facilities in terms of beds, operating rooms, incubators, isolation rooms, intensive care rooms, and resuscitation rooms.
   
• Introduce combined labor, delivery, and recovery room care, enabling mothers and their spouses to stay in the same space with their newborn throughout the labor and delivery process. This internationally-recognized concept is shown to improve outcomes for both mothers and newborns and reduce the length of hospital stay. It will be the first time the concept is used in the public sector in Jordan.
   
• Contribute to the national reduction in maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality by strengthening the delivery of emergency obstetric care at the secondary care level and improving critical and emergency newborn care.