Proposing a Model for the Evaluation of the Iranian Maternal Mortality Surveillance System: A Mixed Method Study

Objectives: The introduction of a suitable subjective model is the first step in drawing up an evaluation plan. This research was conducted to design an evaluation model for the National Maternal Mortality Surveillance System (MMSS) in Iran. Materials and Methods: This mix method study was carried out in four phases. Firstly, the current status of the Iranian MMSS was analyzed, and secondly, various sources of information were examined to identify the guidelines on the evaluation of public health surveillance systems. The guidelines were compared to identify the evaluation steps and the actions required at each step. In addition, the components of the initial model were identified using an expert panel and through considering the results of previous phases. Two rounds of the Delphi method were employed to determine acceptance or rejection of the extracted components. Results: The obtained model includes four axes: (a) the description of the surveillance system (b) the general evaluation planning (c) implementation of the evaluation and (d) post-evaluation follow-ups. Some components of this model are: the purpose and operation of the system, triggers, purpose and objectives of the evaluation, data collection methods and tools, the method of presenting the findings and giving feedback. Conclusions: This model presents different indicators concerning the importance of the system, questions and indicators for the evaluation of system features, standards for assessment the quality of the evaluation activities, and other important components. Using this information to design the evaluations can lead to comparable evaluation results.