Use of uterine balloon tamponade for control of postpartum haemorrhage by community-based health providers in South Sudan

The objective of this paper is to determine whether use of uterine balloon tamponade (UBT) for management of uncontrolled postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) by community-based providers in a resource-limited setting could be feasible, effective, and safe. In rural South Sudan, community providers were trained and equipped with a simple UBT device consisting of a catheter, condom, and syringe. Snowball sampling identified cases of UBT use since training. Semi-structured interviews were conducted among community providers, referral facility providers, patients, and patient family members. A qualitative analysis concludes that training and UBT device provision are simple, affordable, and effective for managing uncontrolled PPH in a resource-limited setting.