The use of clinical check-lists, pioneered for surgery, is to be extended to maternity care, the World Health Organisation has announced.
WHO officials have unveiled their new "Safe Childbirth Checklist and Implementation Guide" aimed at targeting the main causes of death and illness among women and their babies.
They said it distills existing guidelines into a "single and practical" bedside tool.
The project has been backed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and developed at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, USA, together with the Harvard University school of public health.
It has already been tested in hospitals in Africa and Asia and has undergone a field test in Karnataka State, India.
In the field test, birth attendant adherence to recommendations increased from an average of ten out of 29 to 25, developers report.
There is now a randomised control trial under way in India.
The checklist identifies four "pause points" when the list should be ticked. These are when the mother is admitted, just before pushing or Caesarean section starts, one hour after birth and before discharge.
Dr Flavia Bustreo, from WHO, said: "The Safe Childbirth Checklist is a practical tool that could contribute to improving the quality of care of mothers and newborns.”
Professor Atul Gwande, from the Harvard School of Public Health, said: “We know from other health disciplines such as surgery that a properly implemented checklist of best practices encourages a culture of teamwork, problem solving and discipline that leads to better care.
“We believe this simple and low-cost tool can make a difference for women and infants in settings around the world.”
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