Abstract

Preventing Transfer of Asymptomatic COVID-19 Positive Postnatal Women to COVID-19 Negative Zone: A QI Report

Background: Asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 infection are a key contributor to the spread of coronavirus disease. Despite following the national guidelines for the prevention of the COVID-19 infection, a considerable number of asymptomatic COVID-19 positive postnatal women were found admitted in the COVID-19 non-suspect postnatal wards (green zone) at our facility. We undertook a Quality Improvement (QI) initiative starting from 1st July 2020 to admit 100% Postnatal Women (PNW) with a COVID-19 negative report in the green zone by the end of 4 weeks. Method: A fishbone analysis of the problem was done. The Point of Care Quality Improvement (POCQI) methodology was used. There were two COVID-19 non-suspect postnatal wards in the facility out of which one ward was designated as the holding zone for PNW awaiting reports and the other as a green zone for COVID-19 negative PNW. Result: The percentage of COVID-19 positive women of the total number of women admitted to green postnatal wards decreased from 9.1% to 0% at the end of the 4 weeks after 4 PDSA cycles and was sustained over subsequent months. Conclusion: The success of the QI project was attributable to effective communication and the dynamic adoption of solutions to problems encountered during the project.

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