Leveraging Behavioral Science & Design Thinking to Improve Quality of Maternal Care

Session Date: April 22, 2021

Session Description: Strengthening quality of care is critical to improve health outcomes and ensure that clients receive the care they deserve. Behavior change approaches have historically focused on generating demand for healthcare and strengthening healthy habits rather than as a means to improve the quality of care, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. The objective of this session is to demonstrate the use of behavioral science and design thinking to tackle challenges in quality of maternal care. First, we will briefly introduce behavioral design, an approach grounded in behavioral science theory which leverages design thinking for intervention development, and its use in global health. Then, we will share two examples of the application of this approach to strengthen quality of maternity care, the first in improving client experience of care in Zambia and the second in improving provider compliance with best practices related to post-partum hemorrhage in Madagascar. We will share key behavioral insights, design approaches, and evaluation results of this work.