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Scaling Up Co-Created Clinical Guidelines: Processes, Experiences, and Lessons from Maternity Care in Urban Tanzania – The PartoMa Project
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  • Natasha Housseine,
  • Haika Osaki,
  • Brenda Dmello,
  • Luciana Chamwi,
  • Monica Kujabi,
  • Rukia Juma Msumi,
  • Zainab Muniro,
  • Joyce Lema,
  • Ester Hyera,
  • Beauty Mwambebule,
  • Christina Mwandalima,
  • Columba Mbekenga,
  • Eunice Pallangyo,
  • Thomas van den Akker,
  • Jos van Roosmalen,
  • Morten Skovdal,
  • Dan Meyrowitsch,
  • Hussein Kidanto,
  • Tarek Meguid,
  • nanna maaloe
Natasha Housseine
The Aga Khan University Medical College East Africa - Dar es Salaam Campus

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Haika Osaki
Kobenhavns Universitet School of Global Health
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Brenda Dmello
The Aga Khan University Medical College East Africa - Dar es Salaam Campus
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Luciana Chamwi
The Aga Khan University Medical College East Africa - Dar es Salaam Campus
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Monica Kujabi
Kobenhavns Universitet School of Global Health
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Rukia Juma Msumi
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences
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Zainab Muniro
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences
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Joyce Lema
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences School of Medicine
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Ester Hyera
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences
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Beauty Mwambebule
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences School of Medicine
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Christina Mwandalima
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences
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Columba Mbekenga
Hubert Kairuki Memorial University
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Eunice Pallangyo
The Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery East Africa Dar es Salaam
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Thomas van den Akker
Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum
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Jos van Roosmalen
Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum
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Morten Skovdal
Kobenhavns Universitet School of Global Health
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Dan Meyrowitsch
Kobenhavns Universitet School of Global Health
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Hussein Kidanto
The Aga Khan University Medical College East Africa - Dar es Salaam Campus
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Tarek Meguid
University of Cape Town Department of Paediatrics and Child Health
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nanna maaloe
Kobenhavns Universitet School of Global Health
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Abstract

Objective: Resource constraints limit the use of evidence-based clinical guidelines (CPGs). This study describes the adaptation and scale-up of a context-specific maternity care pocket guide, initially co-created in Zanzibar, to five urban health facilities in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Design: Participatory, iterative co-creation. Settings: Five government health facilities in Dar es Salaam (2021). Population: Maternity care providers, researchers, women and other stakeholders. Methods: A structured, flexible CPG adaptation model was applied, combining a mixed-methods situational analysis, review of global and national CPGs, and iterative feedback via focus groups and individual reviews until saturation. The guide was then pilot-tested and implemented. Main Outcome Measures: Co-creation process, PartoMa Pocket Guide and implementation strategy. Results: Two review cycles with 54 frontline providers, two external reviews (11 international experts and 10 Dar es Salaam Health Management Team members), and two consultation meetings with a 28-member core team. The process produced a 24-page infographic pocket guide of CPGs, covering routine care and common complications during childbirth, and a dissemination strategy including in-house, low-dose, high-frequency training. Using the Zanzibar guide streamlined adaptation, revealing notable consistency across resource-constrained settings. However, the process remained time- and resource-intensive, particularly when international scientific evidence was insufficient or failed to capture urban clinical complexities. Conclusions The PartoMa CPG adaptation model effectively contextualises and scales evidence-based CPGs in high-volume, resource-constrained urban settings. Global CPG developers should integrate end-user needs from the outset for more practical and cost-effective adaptations. Funding: Danida Fellowship Centre (DFC), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (DFC project no. 18-08-KU).