Navigating strategies for intercultural maternal and newborn care in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review

In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), women from racial and ethnic minority groups experience disproportionately worse maternal health outcomes. In addition to facing barriers to accessing maternity services, they often receive culturally inappropriate care. To address these inequities, a range of intercultural approaches to maternal and newborn care has been implemented across the region. However, the extent and nature of these initiatives over the past decade remain underexplored. We conducted a scoping review to identify, categorize, and describe strategies for promoting intercultural maternal and newborn care in LAC. We searched nine databases and grey literature for studies published in English, Spanish, or Portuguese between 2013 and 2024. This review identified 75 studies and 16 strategy categories across 13 countries. Most studies addressed Indigenous populations and employed qualitative methods. Strategies were grouped into four cross-cutting domains: (i) healthcare adaptations and workforce capacity building, (ii) intercultural communication and knowledge exchange, (iii) community engagement, and (iv) institutional support and governance. The identified strategies engaged stakeholders at the community, facility, and system levels. Based on these findings, we developed a framework for interculturality in maternal and newborn care. Our analysis indicates that sustainable implementation depends on addressing structural barriers and integrating intercultural principles into health system planning, service delivery, policy, and governance. The proposed framework can inform research, policymaking, and development of intercultural maternal and newborn care initiatives in LAC and other culturally diverse settings.