Measuring socioeconomic status in multicountry studies: Results from the eight-country MAL-ED study
Background: There is no standardized approach to comparing socioeconomic status (SES) across multiple sites in epidemiological studies. This is particularly problematic when cross-country comparisons are of interest. We sought to develop a simple measure of SES that would perform well across diverse, resource-limited settings.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 800 children aged 24 to […]
Understanding barriers to implementing referral procedures in the rural and semi-urban district hospitals in Tanzania: Experiences of healthcare providers working in maternity units
Introduction Maternal and perinatal deaths occurring in low and middle income countries could be prevented with timely access to maternal and new-born care. In order to increase access to maternal and child health services, a well-functioning referral system that allows for continuity of care across different tiers of healthcare is required. A reliable healthcare system, […]
From planning to practice: Building the national network for the surveillance of severe maternal morbidity
Background: Improving maternal health is one of the Millennium Development Goals for 2015. Recently some progress has been achieved in reducing mortality. On the other hand, in developed regions, maternal death is a relatively rare event compared to the number of cases of morbidity; hence studying maternal morbidity has become more relevant. Electronic surveillance systems […]
Social inequality and children’s health in Africa: A cross sectional study
Background: This study examines socioeconomic inequality in children’s health and factors that moderate this inequality. Socioeconomic measures include household wealth, maternal education and urban/rural area of residence. Moderating factors include reproductive behavior, access to health care, time, economic development, health expenditures and foreign aid. Methods: Data are taken from Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between […]
Are Ethiopian women getting the recommended maternal health services? The analysis of Ethiopian mini Demographic and Health Survey 2019
Background and Aims: Health services during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period play a pivotal role in the survival of both the mother and the baby. We, therefore, analyzed maternal health service utilization and the related drivers among women of childbearing age in Ethiopia. Methods: We used secondary data from the 2019 Ethiopian mini Demographic […]
The impact of maternal health insurance coverage and adequate healthcare services utilisation on the risk of under-five mortality in Nigeria: a cross-sectional study
Background: Despite the progress in reducing under-five mortality (U-5 M) in recent years, these deaths remain considerably high in Nigeria. This could be attributed to poor health policies including inequality of health insurance coverage and access to adequate healthcare services utilisations which has remained inimical to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). Therefore, this study examined […]
Psychological interventions for maternal depression among women of African and Caribbean origin: a systematic review
Background: Maternal depression is a leading cause of disease burden for women worldwide; however, there are ethnic inequalities in access to psychological interventions in high-income countries (HICs). Culturally appropriate interventions might prove beneficial for African and Caribbean women living in HICs as ethnic minorities. Methods: The review strategy was formulated using the PICo (Population, phenomenon of […]
Maternal mortality in Kassala State – Eastern Sudan: Community-based study using Reproductive age mortality survey (RAMOS)
Background: The maternal mortality ratio in Sudan was estimated at 750/100,000 live births. Sudan was one of eleven countries that are responsible for 65% of global maternal deaths according to a recent World Health Organization (WHO) estimate. Maternal mortality in Kassala State was high in national demographic surveys. This study was conducted to investigate the […]
Factors influencing access of pregnant women and their infants to their local healthcare system: A prospective, multi-centre, observational study
Background: The successful implementation of maternal vaccination relies on results of clinical trials, considering the prenatal and postnatal attendance at selected healthcare institutions. This study evaluated factors influencing maternal/infant access to healthcare facilities to identify potential barriers to participation in future clinical trials on maternal vaccination. Methods: In this prospective, multi-centre, observational study, pregnant women […]
Association of maternal depression and anxiety with toddler social-emotional and cognitive development in South Africa: A prospective cohort study
Objective A robust literature has identified associations between prenatal maternal depression and adverse child social-emotional and cognitive outcomes. The majority of prior research is from high-income countries despite increased reporting of perinatal depression in low/middle-income countries (LMICs). Additionally, despite the comorbidity between depression and anxiety, few prior studies have examined their joint impact on child […]
