Maternal and health care workers’ perspectives on exclusive breastfeeding in the context of maternal HIV infection, in Busia county, western Kenya: a mixed methods cross-sectional survey

Background: World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for 6 months with maternal active antiretroviral therapy (ART) to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV. However, EBF in low resource settings remains low. We explored perspectives of EBF by HIV-infected mothers and health care workers in Busia County with a high prevalence of HIV to understand factors […]

Acute malnutrition and its contributing factors among children under-five years in rural kebeles of Shashemene Oromia, Ethiopia

Introduction: Globally, more than 52 million under-five years old were wasted; One-third of these children live in Africa. Ethiopia is the seventh country among the ten top countries in which acute malnutrition (AM) is concentrated and currently 10% of under-five children are wasted. Even though Ethiopia has implemented a variety of nutritional interventions, acute malnutrition […]

Prevalence of prenatal zinc deficiency and its association with socio-demographic, dietary and health care related factors in Rural Sidama, Southern Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study

Background: Several studies witnessed that prenatal zinc deficiency (ZD) predisposes to diverse pregnancy complications. However, scientific evidences on the determinants of prenatal ZD are scanty and inconclusive. The purpose of the present study was to assess the prevalence and determinants of prenatal ZD in Sidama zone, Southern Ethiopia. Methods. A community based, cross-sectional study was […]

Human resources for health and universal health coverage: Fostering equity and effective coverage

Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) involves distributing resources, especially human resources for health (HRH), to match population needs. This paper explores the policy lessons on HRH from four countries that have achieved sustained improvements in UHC: Brazil, Ghana, Mexico and Thailand. Its purpose is to inform global policy and financial commitments on HRH in support […]

Implementing demand side targeting mechanisms for maternal and child health-experiences from national health insurance fund program in Rungwe District, Tanzania

Background: Low and middle income countries have adopted targeting mechanisms as a means of increasing program efficiency in reaching marginalized people in the community given the available resources. Design of targeting mechanisms has been changing over time and it is important to understand implementers’ experience with such targeting mechanisms since such mechanisms impact equity in […]

Early changes in intervention coverage and mortality rates following the implementation of an integrated health system intervention in Madagascar

Introduction The Sustainable Development Goals framed an unprecedented commitment to achieve global convergence in child and maternal mortality rates through 2030. To meet those targets, essential health services must be scaled via integration with strengthened health systems. This is especially urgent in Madagascar, the country with the lowest level of financing for health in the […]

Household food access and child malnutrition: Results from the eight-country MAL-ED study

Background: Stunting results from decreased food intake, poor diet quality, and a high burden of early childhood infections, and contributes to significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although food insecurity is an important determinant of child nutrition, including stunting, development of universal measures has been challenging due to cumbersome nutritional questionnaires and concerns about lack of […]

Formal maternal employment is associated with lower odds of exclusive breastfeeding by 14 weeks postpartum: A cross-sectional survey in Naivasha, Kenya

Background: In many low-and middle-income countries, improvements in exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) have stalled, delaying reductions in child mortality. Maternal employment is a potential barrier to EBF. Objectives: We evaluated associations between maternal employment and breastfeeding (BF) status. We compared formally and non-formally employed mothers in Naivasha, Kenya, where commercial floriculture and hospitality industries employ many […]

Factors associated with the utilization of institutional delivery services in Bangladesh

Introduction: Bangladesh has made remarkable progress towards reducing its maternal mortality rate (MMR) over the last two decades and is one of the few countries on track to achieving the MMR-related Millennium Development Goals (MDG-5A). However, the provision of universal access to reproductive healthcare (MDG-5B) and the utilization of maternal healthcare services (MHS) such as […]

Has Ebola delayed progress on access to routine care and financial protection in Sierra Leone? Evidence from a difference-in-differences analysis with propensity score weighting

Introduction: Covid-19 has highlighted the need to understand the long-term impact of epidemics on health systems. There is extensive evidence that the Ebola epidemic of 2014-16 dramatically reduced coverage of key reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCAH) indicators during the period of acute crisis in Sierra Leone. However, less is known about the […]