Guide

Consolidated Guidelines for the Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Postpartum Haemorrhage

Midwifery Practice
FIGO, ICM, WHO
Last Edited 6 October 2025 13:30 CEST

Although there are well-established interventions to prevent, diagnose, and treat postpartum haemorrhage (PPH), their implementation remains slow. Life-saving measures are sometimes applied inconsistently or too late due to delayed recognition of PPH. Fragmented and occasionally conflicting international guidance has contributed to low uptake of evidence-based practices. Comprehensive, unified guidance that addresses these health system barriers can strengthen the global response to PPH and reduce maternal mortality and morbidity.

These consolidated guidelines focus on care for women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the immediate postpartum period in all health care settings. Built on the principle that every woman deserves safe, high-quality care, they provide effective strategies for the prevention, diagnosis, and management of PPH.

These guidelines are a game-changer. But to end preventable deaths from PPH, we need more than evidence and protocols. We call on governments, health systems, donors, and partners to step up, adopt these recommendations, adopt them quickly, and invest in midwives and maternal care so that postpartum haemorrhage becomes a tragedy of the past.

— Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent OBE