Designing, Implementing, and Managing a National Emergency Medical Service in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is one of the least developed low-income countries (LICs), slowly recovering from the effects of a devastating civil war and an Ebola outbreak. The health care system is characterized by chronic shortage of skilled human resources, equipment, and essential medicines. The referral system is weak and vulnerable, with 75% of the country having […]
Institutionalization of limited obstetric ultrasound leading to increased antenatal, skilled delivery, and postnatal service utilization in three regions of Ethiopia: A pre-post study
Background A minimum of one ultrasound scan is recommended for all pregnant women before the 24th week of gestation. In Ethiopia, there is a shortage of skilled manpower to provide these services. Currently, trained mid-level providers are providing the services at the primary healthcare level. The aims of this study were to compare antenatal care […]
Minding the gaps: health financing, universal health coverage and gender
In a webinar in 2015 on health financing and gender, the question was raised why we need to focus on gender, given that a well-functioning system moving towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC) will automatically be equitable and gender balanced. This article provides a reflection on this question from a panel of health financing and gender […]
Crossbreeding in beef production: Meta-analysis of breed means to estimate breed-specific effects on leather properties
The objective of this study was to discern opportunities for improving leather-making properties of hides originating from beef production systems based on indigenous Afrikaner cattle via crossbreeding. Data were previously unpublished breed means from purebred Afrikaner, Brahman, Charolais, Hereford and Simmental, top-crosses of Brahman, Charolais, Hereford, and Simmental sires on (1) Afrikaner dams producing F1 […]
Effect of the CRADLE vital signs alert device intervention on referrals for obstetric haemorrhage in low-middle income countries: a secondary analysis of a stepped- wedge cluster-randomised control trial
Background: Obstetric haemorrhage is the leading cause of maternal death worldwide, 99% of which occur in low and middle income countries. The majority of deaths and adverse events are associated with delays in identifying compromise and escalating care. Management of severely compromised pregnant women may require transfer to tertiary centres for specialised treatment, therefore early […]
Health and nutrition knowledge, attitudes and practices of pregnant women attending and not-attending ANC clinics in Western Kenya: A cross-sectional analysis
Background: Antenatal care (ANC) is a key strategy to decreasing maternal mortality in low-resource settings. ANC clinics provide resources to improve nutrition and health knowledge and promote preventive health practices. We sought to compare the knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) among women seeking and not-seeking ANC in rural Kenya.Methods: Data from a community-based cross-sectional survey […]
Quality and outcomes of maternal and perinatal care for 76,563 pregnancies reported in a nationwide network of Nigerian referral-level hospitals
Background: The WHO in collaboration with the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health, established a nationwide electronic data platform across referral-level hospitals. We report the burden of maternal, foetal and neonatal complications and quality and outcomes of care during the first year. Methods: Data were analysed from 76,563 women who were admitted for delivery or on […]
Benefits, barriers and enablers of maternity waiting homes utilization in Ethiopia: an integrative review of national implementation experience to date
Background: Though Ethiopia has expanded Maternity Waiting Homes (MWHs) to reduce maternal and perinatal mortality, the utilization rate is low. To maximize the use of MWH, policymakers must be aware of the barriers and benefits of using MWH. This review aimed to describe the evidence on the barriers and benefits to access and use of […]
Barriers, facilitators and priorities for implementation of WHO Maternal and perinatal health guidelines in four lower-income countries: A great network research activity
Background Health systems often fail to use evidence in clinical practice. In maternal and perinatal health, the majority of maternal, fetal and newborn mortality is preventable through implementing effective interventions. To meet this challenge, WHO’s Department of Reproductive Health and Research partnered with the Knowledge Translation Program at St. Michael’s Hospital (SMH), University of Toronto, […]
Severe maternal morbidity in the Asia Pacific: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Monitoring rates of severe maternal morbidity (such as eclampsia and uterine rupture) is useful to assess the quality of obstetric care, particularly in low and lower-middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: We undertook a systematic review characterising the proportion and causes of severe maternal morbidity in the Asia Pacific region. We searched Medline, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL […]
