Ontario launches first provincial pilot to track severe pregnancy and childbirth complications
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Ontario launched its first province-wide pilot Monday to track and examine severe complications linked to pregnancy and childbirth, with the goal of identifying why they occur and using those findings to improve maternal care.
The CanOSS Ontario initiative, developed by the Canadian Obstetric Survey System in partnership with BORN Ontario, will begin with severe hemorrhage during or after childbirth, which organizers identify as the leading cause of maternal deaths following delivery in Ontario.
Future review cycles will focus on other serious pregnancy-related conditions, including sepsis and preeclampsia, as the program builds a broader picture of severe maternal complications during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period.
Rather than simply counting cases, the initiative will use multidisciplinary reviews that protect patient confidentiality to examine the circumstances surrounding serious complications, identify patterns and modifiable factors, and turn those findings into practical improvements in care.
BORN Ontario will provide the registry infrastructure, including data collection, governance and privacy protection, while CanOSS Ontario will lead the review process, analyze findings and develop strategies that can be applied across the health system. The pilot includes 25 birthing facilities and 40 members of the CanOSS Ontario College of Assessors.
Dr. Rohan D’Souza, lead of CanOSS Ontario and Canada Research Chair in Maternal Health at McMaster University, said severe maternal complications are rarely explained by a single factor and that understanding what lies behind them is essential to improving care.
The initiative launched on October 5, World Postpartum Hemorrhage Day, and is intended to serve as the first step toward a coordinated national obstetric surveillance system in Canada.
