Home visits in the first week of life
RECOMMENDATION 3
Home visits in the first week after birth are recommended for care of the mother and
newborn.
— Strong recommendation, based on moderate quality evidence for newborn outcomes and
low quality evidence for maternal outcomes
Remarks:
● Postnatal visits are usually linked with home visits during pregnancy, particularly in high
mortality settings.
● Home visits during pregnancy do not replace antenatal care; they promote utilization of it.
● Depending on the existing health system in different settings, these home visits can be
made by midwives, other skilled providers or well-trained and supervised CHWs.
● Postnatal contacts also occur at clinic visits.
Review question
In low and middle-income settings (P), do home visits by CHWs (I) compared to routine
care (C) prevent neonatal and perinatal mortality (O)?