In the Indian public health system, primary health centres
(PHCs) should be available for a rural catchment population
of 30,000. “24/7” PHCs are those that offer services
around the clock and are staffed by at least one doctor, also
known as a medical officer (MO), and 3–5 staff nurses
(SNs). These providers offer skilled birth care, including
screening, management and referral of maternal and newborn
complications to higher-level referral facilities [11,12].
Referral facilities include public facilities, also termed as
first referral units (FRUs) and private facilities; they generally
are staffed by a greater number of MOs and SNs. In
addition, they usually have specialists, and are equipped
with infrastructure and resources to handle obstetric and
newborn emergencies [12].