IMAgiNE Global – Improving MAternal Newborn carE

IMAgiNE Global – Improving MAternal Newborn carE

O IMAgiNE GLOBAL é uma rede internacional de investigação coordenada pelo WHO Collaborating Centre for Maternal and Child Health, do IRCCS Burlo Garofolo (Trieste, Itália), dedicada à monitorização e melhoria da qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais a nível mundial. Constitui a expansão do projeto IMAgiNE EURO, inicialmente desenvolvido na Região Europeia da Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS). A rede integra atualmente 107 instituições parceiras de 39 países e utiliza instrumentos padronizados, desenvolvidos com base nos WHO Standards for Improving Quality of Maternal and Newborn Care in Health Facilities, para avaliar a qualidade dos cuidados na perspetiva das mulheres e dos profissionais de saúde. Os dados produzidos permitem comparar países e regiões, monitorizar tendências temporais, identificar desigualdades na qualidade dos cuidados e apoiar o desenvolvimento de políticas, práticas clínicas e intervenções baseadas na evidência, contribuindo para cuidados maternos e neonatais seguros, respeitadores e centrados na mulher.

Objetivos
  • Avaliar a implementação dos WHO Standards for Improving Quality of Maternal and Newborn Care in Health Facilities.
  • Avaliar a qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais na perspetiva das mulheres e dos profissionais de saúde.
  • Comparar indicadores da qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais entre países, regiões e diferentes contextos de prestação de cuidados.
  • Monitorizar tendências temporais na qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais.
  • Identificar desigualdades na qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais entre diferentes populações e contextos de prestação de cuidados.
  • Produzir evidência científica para apoiar a melhoria contínua da qualidade dos cuidados maternos e neonatais e a definição de políticas de saúde baseadas na evidência.
Parceiros

O consórcio internacional integra as seguintes instituições parceiras:

  • Alemanha: Bielefeld University; Katholische Stiftungshochschule München; University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hildesheim/Holzminden/Göttingen
  • Arábia Saudita: Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University; King Saud University
  • Austrália: University of Sydney; University of Newcastle; Miracle Babies Foundation
  • Áustria: Health University of Applied Sciences Tyrol; University of Applied Sciences Burgenland; Medical University of Innsbruck
  • Bélgica: Ghent University; Haute École Léonard de Vinci; Hasselt University; KU Leuven
  • Bósnia-Herzegovina: Immuno Centar Sarajevo
  • Brasil: Instituto de Medicina Integral Professor Fernando Figueira (IMIP)
  • Chile: Universidad de Valparaíso
  • China: Hebei Medical University; National Research Institute for Family Planning; Tongji University Affiliated Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital; Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University
  • Chipre: Cyprus University of Technology; Birth Forward NGO
  • Croácia: University of Rijeka; Roda – Parents in Action; International Confederation of Midwives (ICM)
  • Eslovénia: National Institute of Public Health
  • Espanha: Vall d’Hebron University Foundation; Rovira i Virgili University; La Casa de Isis Birth Centre
  • Estónia: Tartu Applied Health Sciences University; Estonian Midwives Association; University of Tartu
  • França: Institut National d’Études Démographiques (INED); Baby-friendly Hospital Initiative (IHAB)
  • Geórgia: University of Georgia
  • Grécia: University of West Attica; University of Western Macedonia
  • Islândia: University of Iceland
  • Indonésia: Bumil Pamil Indonesia; Health Polytechnic Ministry of Health of Jakarta III
  • Israel: Ohio University; Ruppin Academic Center; Shamir Medical Center
  • Itália: IRCCS Burlo Garofolo; University of Milano-Bicocca; Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori; University of Genoa; Università degli Studi di Firenze; Humanitas University; IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital
  • Letónia: Rīga Stradiņš University; Riga East Clinical University Hospital; Riga Maternity Hospital
  • Lituânia: Vytautas Magnus University; Lithuanian Midwives Union; SMK University of Applied Sciences; Lithuanian University of Health Sciences; Vilnius University
  • Luxemburgo: Beruffsverband vun de Laktatiounsberoderinnen zu Lëtzebuer
  • Nigéria: University College Hospital Ibadan; PAMO University of Medical Sciences
  • Noruega: UiT The Arctic University of Norway; Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
  • Países Baixos: Leiden University Medical Centre; Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
  • Polónia: Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education; University of Gdańsk
  • Portugal: Escola Superior de Enfermagem da Universidade do Porto (ESEP); Associação Portuguesa dos Enfermeiros Obstetras (APEO); Universidade Lusófona; Universidade Lusíada; Direção-Geral da Saúde
  • Reino Unido: King’s College London
  • República Checa: Association for Freestanding Birth Centres and Alongside Midwifery Units; Healthy Parenting Association (APERIO)
  • Roménia: SAMAS Association
  • Sérvia: Centar za Mame
  • Sri Lanka: University of Colombo; Colombo South Teaching Hospital; De Soysa Hospital for Women; Health Promotion Bureau
  • Suécia: University of Gothenburg; Lund University; Sahlgrenska University Hospital
  • Suíça: HESAV School of Health Sciences – HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland
  • Turquia: Sivas Cumhuriyet University; Balikesir University; Sakarya University of Applied Science
  • Ucrânia: NGO Safe Birth
  • Uruguai: Universidad de la República
Equipa de investigação

Coordenação internacional

Marzia Lazzerini
WHO Collaborating Centre for Maternal and Child Health
IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, Trieste, Itália

Investigadores portugueses
Maria Arminda Nunes
Escola Superior de Enfermagem da Universidade do Porto

Raquel Costa
Universidade Lusófona, HEI-Lab: Digital Human-Environment Interaction Labs

Heloísa Dias
Direção-Geral da Saúde

Tiago Miguel Pinto
Universidade Lusófona, HEI-Lab: Digital Human-Environment Interaction Labs

Sofia Marques
Universidade Lusíada; CIPD – Psychology for Development Research Centre

Ana Meireles
Universidade Lusíada; CIPD – Psychology for Development Research Centre

Joana Oliveira
Universidade Lusíada; CIPD – Psychology for Development Research Centre

Mariana Pereira
Universidade Lusíada; CIPD – Psychology for Development Research Centre

Produção Científica​

Galle, A., Berghman, H., Mariani, I., Verdecchia, M., Bomben, A., Vik, E. S., Drandic, D., Pumpure, E., Costa, R., Elden, H., Miani, C., Baranowska, B., Sarantaki, A., Drglin, Z., Radetic, J., Liepinaitienė, A., Rozée, V., Abderhalden-Zellweger, A., Cerimagic, A., König-Bachmann, M., … IMagiNE EURO Study Group. (2026). Experiences of disrespect and abuse during childbirth in the World Health Organization European Region: A mixed-method study among 22 countries. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 172(3), 1576–1590. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijgo.70516

Batram-Zantvoort, S., Miani, C., Mariani, I., Valente, E. P., Zaigham, M., Nedberg, I. H., Kurbanović, M., Pumpure, E., Bohinec, A., Sarantaki, A., Baranowska, B., Abderhalden-Zellweger, A., de La Rochebrochard, E., Costa, R., Otelea, M. R., Liepinaitienė, A., Radetic, J., Ćerimagić, A., Arendt, M., König-Bachmann, M., … IMAgiNE EURO Study Group. (2025). The association between women’s perception of birth during the pandemic, companion of choice and support from health professionals: A cross-sectional study in 20 countries in the WHO European Region. Birth, 52(4), 677–689. https://doi.org/10.1111/birt.12915

Grylka-Baeschlin, S., Gemperle, M., Mariani, I., Abderhalden-Zellweger, A., Miani, C., Zenzmaier, C., Mueller, A. N., Batram-Zantvoort, S., Koenig-Bachmann, M., De Labrusse, C., Arendt, M., Delle Vedove, S., Pfund, A., Simon, I., Valente, E. P., Lazzerini, M., & IMAgiNE Euro Study Group. (2025). Women’s perception on the quality of maternal and newborn care during the COVID-19 pandemic in German-speaking countries: Findings from the IMAgiNE EURO project comparing data from Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Midwifery, 140, 104209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2024.104209

Valente, E. P., Mariani, I., Bomben, A., Morano, S., Gemperle, M., Otelea, M. R., Miani, C., Elden, H., Sarantaki, A., Costa, R., Baranowska, B., König-Bachmann, M., Kongslien, S., Drandić, D., Rozée, V., Nespoli, A., Abderhalden-Zellweger, A., Nanu, I., Batram-Zantvoort, S., Linden, K., … Improving MAternal Newborn carE in the EURO Region (IMAgiNE EURO) Study Group. (2024). Health workers’ perspectives on the quality of maternal and newborn health care around the time of childbirth: Results of the Improving MAternal Newborn carE in the EURO Region (IMAgiNE EURO) project in 12 countries of the World Health Organization European Region. Journal of Global Health, 14, 04164. https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.14.04164

Galle, A., Berghman, H., D’Hauwers, S., Vaerewijck, N., Valente, E. P., Mariani, I., Bomben, A., Delle Vedove, S., Lazzerini, M., & IMAgiNE EURO Study Group. (2024). Quality of care at childbirth during the COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium: A cross-sectional study based on WHO standards. BMJ Open, 14(12), e086937. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2024-086937

Zaigham, M., Linden, K., Elden, H., Delle Vedove, S., Mariani, I., Kongslien, S., Drandić, D., Pumpure, E., Drglin, Z., Costa, R., Sarantaki, A., de Labrusse, C., Miani, C., Oțelea, M. R., Liepinaitienė, A., Baranowska, B., Rozée, V., Valente, E. P., Vik, E. S., … Lazzerini, M., & the IMAgiNE EURO Study Group. (2024). Trends in the quality of maternal and neonatal care in Sweden and Norway as compared to 12 WHO European countries: A cross-sectional survey investigating maternal perspectives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, 103, 2485–2498. https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.14994

Lazzerini, M., Mariani, I., Semenzato, C., et al., & IMAgiNE EURO Study Group. (2022). Quality of facility-based maternal and newborn care around the time of childbirth during the COVID-19 pandemic: Online survey investigating maternal perspectives in 12 countries of the WHO European Region. The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, 13, 100268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanepe.2021.100268

Lazzerini, M., Mariani, I., Semenzato, C., Covi, B., Valente, E. P., IMAgiNE EURO Study Group, et al. (2022). WHO standards-based tool to measure women’s views on the quality of care around the time of childbirth at facility level in the WHO European Region: Development and validation in Italy. BMJ Open, 12(2), e048195. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-048195

Valente, E. P., Mariani, I., Covi, B., Marongiu, A., Lazzerini, M., & IMAgiNE EURO Study Group. (2022). WHO standards-based questionnaire to measure health workers’ perspective on the quality of care around the time of childbirth in the WHO European Region: Development and mixed-methods validation in six countries. BMJ Open, 12(6), e056753. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-056753