Outcome of an intervention to improve the quality of private sector provision of postabortion care in northern Nigeria

The outcomes of an intervention aimed at improving the quality of postabortion care provided by private medical practitioners in 8 states in northern Nigeria are reported. A total of 458 private medical doctors and 839 nurses and midwives were trained to offer high-quality postabortion care, postabortion family planning, and integrated sexually transmitted infection/HIV care. Results showed that among the 17009 women treated over 10 years, there was not a single case of maternal death. In a detailed analysis of 2559 women treated during a 15-month period after the intervention was established, only 33 women experienced mild complications, while none suffered major complications of abortion care. At the same time, there was a reduction in treatment cost and a doubling of the contraceptive uptake by the women. Building the capacity of private medical providers can reduce maternal morbidity and mortality associated with induced abortion in northern Nigeria.