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BACKGROUND Postmenstrual age for surviving infants without congenital anomalies born at 24-29 weeks' gestational age from 2005 to 2018 in the USA increased 8 days, discharge weight increased 316 grams, and median discharge weight z-score increased 0.19 standard units. We asked whether increases were observed in other countries. METHODS We evaluated postmenstrual age, weight, and weight z-score at discharge of surviving infants without congenital anomalies born at 24-29 weeks' gestational age admitted to Vermont Oxford Network member hospitals in Austria, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland, the UK, and the USA from 2012 to 2020. RESULTS After adjustment, the median postmenstrual age at discharge increased significantly in Austria (3.6 days, 99% CI [1.0, 6.3]), Italy (4.0 days [2.3, 5.6]), and the USA (5.4 days [5.0, 5.8]). Median discharge weight increased significantly in Austria (181 grams, 99% CI [95, 267]), Ireland (234 [143, 325]), Italy (133 [83, 182]), and the USA (207 [194, 220]). Median discharge weight z-score increased in Ireland (0.24 standard units, 99% CI [0.12, 0.36]) and the USA (0.15 [0.13, 0.16]). Discharge on human milk increased in Italy, Switzerland, and the UK, while going home on cardiorespiratory monitors decreased in Austria, Ireland, and USA and going home on oxygen decreased in Ireland. CONCLUSIONS In this international cohort of neonatal intensive care units, postmenstrual discharge age and weight increased in some, but not all, countries. Processes of care at discharge did not change in conjunction with age and weight increases.

Achieving the ambitious reduction in global neonatal mortality targeted in the Sustainable Development Goals and Every Newborn Action Plan will require reducing geographic disparities in newborn deaths through targeted implementation of evidence-based practices. Helping Babies Survive, a suite of educational programs targeting the 3 leading causes of neonatal mortality, has been commonly used to educate providers in evidence-based practices in low-resource settings. Quality improvement (QI) can play a pivotal role in translating this education into improved care. Measurement of key process and outcome indicators, derived from the algorithms ("Action Plans") central to these training programs, can assist health care providers in understanding the baseline quality of their care, identifying gaps, and assessing improvement. Helping Babies Survive has been the focus of QI programs in Kenya, Nepal, Honduras, and Ethiopia, with critical lessons learned regarding the challenge of measurement, necessity of facility-based QI mentorship and multidisciplinary teams, and importance of systemic commitment to improvement in promoting a culture of QI. Complementing education with QI strategies to identify and close remaining gaps in newborn care will be essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Every Newborn Action Plan targets in the coming decade.