[Maternal mortality, adequation of care and preventability, France 2016-2018]

To describe, for the 2016-2018 period, the adequacy of care provided to women who died of maternal death in France, as well as the possible preventability of these deaths.

National data from the Enquête Nationale Confidentielle sur les Morts Maternelles for 2016-2018. For each maternal death identified, the National Expert Committee on Maternal Mortality (CNEMM) assesses the adequacy of the care provided and whether the death was probably, possibly or not preventable.

For 2016-2018, 272 maternal deaths (considered up to 1 year after the end of pregnancy) occurred in France. Of these, 265 had sufficient information collected by the confidential survey and could be assessed by the CNEMM. In total, care was judged to be "sub-optimal" for 66% of deaths assessed for all causes, a proportion similar to that for previous periods. In addition to the obstetric and anaesthetic care provided at the time of the acute complication, which was judged to be sub-optimal for 45% (obstetric care) and 38% (anaesthetic care) of maternal deaths, this report highlights the scope for improvement in other types of care, more related to prevention and screening: "sub-optimal" preconception care for 51% of the women who died for whom it was justified, particularly notable for deaths linked to a preexisting condition (52%) and for suicides (67%); prenatal surveillance judged to be "sub-optimal" in 30% of cases, a sub-optimality also more frequent among deaths linked to a preexisting condition (35%) and suicides (34%). In all, 59.7% of maternal deaths assessed were judged to be "probably" (17%) or "possibly" (42.7%) preventable, a profile that remained stable. Suicide and other psychiatric causes, the leading cause of maternal death, were considered to be potentially preventable in 79% of cases. Deaths from haemorrhage remained largely preventable (95%, the highest proportion by cause). The factor most often implicated was inadequate care, and preventability linked to this factor was identified in 53% of deaths, all causes combined. Gap in organization of care was a preventability factor identified in 24% of deaths, and poor interaction between the woman and the healthcare system in 22% of deaths.

This proportion of more than half of potentially preventable maternal deaths shows that a reduction in maternal mortality in France is still possible and must be achieved, the objective being to prevent all preventable deaths. Analysis of the factors involved, overall and by cause of death, suggests areas for improvement.