Availability and Utilization of Postabortion Care Services in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, and Guinea: A Secondary Analysis of Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care Needs Assessments (EmONC)
SYNOPSIS: Generally, there are disparities in the availability and utilization of postabortion care services within the different regions at the national level in Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, and Guinea and between the 3 countries. Access to postabortion care at the primary level must be improved and the adoption of family planning when providing postabortion care. […]
Disability and access to sexual and reproductive health services in Cameroon: A mediation analysis of the role of socioeconomic factors
There is growing evidence showing that people with disabilities face more frequently socioeconomic inequities than their non-disabled peers. This study aims to examine to what extent socioeconomic consequences of disability contribute to poorer access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services for Cameroonian with disabilities and how these outcomes vary with disabilities characteristics and gender. […]
Effectiveness of adjunct telephone-based postnatal care on maternal and infant illness in the Greater Accra Region, Ghana: a randomized controlled trial
Introduction: Globally, postnatal care (PNC) is fraught with challenges. Despite high PNC coverages in Ghana’s Greater Accra Region (GAR), maternal and newborn health outcomes are of great concern. In 2017, neonatal and post-neonatal mortality rates in GAR were 19 and 13 per 1000 live births respectively despite PNC coverages of 93% for at least one […]
Maternal morbidity measurement tool pilot: Study protocol
Background: While it is estimated that for every maternal death, 20-30 women suffer morbidity, these estimates are not based on standardized methods and measures. Lack of an agreed-upon definition, identification criteria, standardized assessment tools, and indicators has limited valid, routine, and comparable measurements of maternal morbidity. The World Health Organization (WHO) convened the Maternal Morbidity […]
International child health: 10 Years of democracy in South Africa; the challenges facing children today
Decades of discriminatory apartheid policies resulted in marked racial disparity in children’s health in South Africa. In 1994, the country’s first democratically elected government prioritised maternal and child health. Ten years of democracy have yielded varied success for child health and well-being. Although excellent policies now exist, there has been less success in transforming these […]
Charting health system reconstruction in post-war Liberia: A comparison of rural vs. remote healthcare utilization
Background: Despite a growing global emphasis on universal healthcare, access to basic primary care for remote populations in post-conflict countries remains a challenge. To better understand health sector recovery in post-conflict Liberia, this paper seeks to evaluate changes in utilization of health services among rural populations across a 5-year time span. Methods: We assessed trends […]
Lived experiences of women who developed uterine rupture following severe obstructed labor in Mulago hospital, Uganda
Background: Maternal mortality is a major public health challenge in Uganda. Whereas uterine rupture remains a major cause of maternal morbidity and mortality, there is limited research into what happens to women who survive such severe obstetric complications. Understanding their experiences might delineate strategies to support survivors. Methods. This qualitative study used a phenomenological approach […]
Predicting the impact of COVID-19 and the potential impact of the public health response on disease burden in Uganda
The COVID-19 pandemic and public health “lockdown” responses in sub-Saharan Africa, including Uganda, are now widely reported. Although the impact of COVID-19 on African populations has been relatively light, it is feared that redirecting focus and prioritization of health systems to fight COVID-19 may have an impact on access to non–COVID-19 diseases. We applied age-based […]
The proposed need for integrated maternal and child oral health policy: A case of South Africa
The high oral disease burden among children in South Africa, specifically early childhood caries, has received scant attention despite the fact that it is a public health concern that negatively impacts the overall well-being and quality of life of the child. While South Africa has a number of well documented policies that focus on oral […]
Prevention of hepatitis B mother-to-child transmission in Namibia: A cost-effectiveness analysis
Despite access to a safe and effective vaccine, mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of hepatitis B virus (HBV) persists in Africa. This is of concern since perinatally-infected infants are at highest risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma, a life-threatening consequence of chronic HBV infection. While tools to prevent HBV MTCT are available, the cost implications of these interventions […]
