Where are the gaps in improving maternal and child health in Mauritania? The case for contextualised interventions: A cross sectional study

Introduction: It is estimated that any progress made towards improving maternal and child health in Mauritania has likely stalled. A lack of reliable and up-to-date data regarding maternal and child health indicators makes it difficult to identify current gaps and adapt international programmes to meet local needs Methods: Using secondary data collected as part of […]

Effectiveness of mHealth interventions targeting health care workers to improve pregnancy outcomes in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review

Background: Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) face the highest burden of maternal and neonatal deaths. Concurrently, they have the lowest number of physicians. Innovative methods such as the exchange of health-related information using mobile devices (mHealth) may support health care workers in the provision of antenatal, delivery, and postnatal care to improve maternal and neonatal […]

Assessing Combined Longitudinal Mentorship and Skills Training on Select Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes in Rural and Urban Health Facilities in Malawi

Introduction: Despite successful efforts to improve clinical access and skilled birth attendance in Malawi, it still faces high rates of maternal and neonatal mortality. In 2017, the UCSF-GAIN partnership began a nurse-midwifery clinical education and longitudinal mentorship program. While it has received positive reviews, it is unclear whether routinely collected indicators can assess such a […]

A ketamine package for use in emergency cesarean delivery when no anesthetist is available: An analysis of 401 consecutive operations

Objective: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a ketamine-based anesthesia package to support emergency cesarean section when no anesthetist is available. Methods: A prospective case-series was conducted between December 11, 2013 and September 30, 2021 across nine sub-county hospitals in Kenya. Non-anesthetist healthcare providers undertook an evidence-based five-day training course. A structured instrument was […]

Exploring health-seeking behavior among adolescent mothers during the Ebola epidemic in Western rural district of Freetown, Sierra Leone

Background: From 2014 to 2016, the largest Ebola outbreak in history threatened Sierra Leone and its neighbouring countries, Guinea and Liberia. The Ebola outbreak impacted pregnant adolescent girl’s access to prenatal care during the pandemic. The aim of this study is to understand health-seeking behaviour among adolescent mothers who were pregnant during the Ebola epidemic […]

Determinants of maternal health services utilization in Uganda

Background: Uganda’s poor maternal health indicators have resulted from weak maternal health services delivery, including access to quality family planning, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric care, and postnatal care for mothers and newborns. This paper investigated the predictors of maternal health services (MHS) utilization characterized as: desirable, moderate and undesirable. Methods: We used a sample […]

Stakeholder analysis for a maternal and newborn health project in Eastern Uganda

Background: Based on the realization that Uganda is not on track to achieving Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5, Makerere University School of Public Health in collaboration with other partners proposed to conduct two community based maternal/newborn care interventions aimed at increasing access to health facility care through transport vouchers and use of community health […]

Early life risk factors of motor, cognitive and language development: A pooled analysis of studies from low/middle-income countries

Objective To determine the magnitude of relationships of early life factors with child development in low/middle-income countries (LMICs). Design Meta-analyses of standardised mean differences (SMDs) estimated from published and unpublished data. Data sources We searched Medline, bibliographies of key articles and reviews, and grey literature to identify studies from LMICs that collected data on early […]

Causes and contributing factors of maternal mortality in Bosaso District of Somalia. A retrospective study of 30 cases using a Verbal Autopsy approach

Background: Somali women suffer from one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Somalia characterises a specific low-income country situation with a mix of newly urbanized and nomadic culture combined with a frail health care infrastructure set in a post-conflict era. Very little is known about the effects that these contextual factors can […]

Healthcare service providers’ and facility administrators’ perspectives of the free maternal healthcare services policy in Malindi District, Kenya: A qualitative study

Background: Globally, there are increasing efforts to improve maternal health outcomes including the reduction in maternal mortality rates. Improved access to skilled care utilisation during pregnancy and delivery has been one of the strategies employed to improve maternal health outcomes. In Kenya, more than half of the women deliver without the assistance of a skilled […]