Perinatal health monitoring

Monitoring of perinatal health in Luxembourg: Perinat/Susana.lu

Since 1980, all maternity units in Luxembourg have been collecting data about the state of health of mothers and babies at the time of birth. This programme, known as SUSANA (SUrveillance de la SAnté autour de la NAissance – Health Monitoring around Birth), is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Health and Social Security, which has delegated the running of the programme to the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH). It was devised by the PERINAT national committee, a body of representatives of the healthcare professions involved: gynaecologists, neonatologists, paediatricians, midwives, paediatric nurses, the LIH and the Health Directorate.

As part of this programme, information is gathered about:

  • the mother's health during her pregnancy and around the period of birth,
  • the baby's health at birth and over its first few days of life.
The information collected conforms to the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Euro-Peristat working group and the EuroNeoNet working group, and to the national needs defined by the Health Directorate and the PERINAT national committee.

The SUSANA programme serves to:

  • Provide a broad view of the health of mothers and babies.
  • Identify health risks in order to address them in a targeted manner.
  • Monitor the treatment and quality of care given to mothers and babies in Luxembourg, and improve them if necessary.
  • Track the evolution of mother and baby health over time.
  • Compare Luxembourg's outcomes with international ones.
  • Establish preventive programmes and actions to promote health on the basis of the results obtained.

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