Prediction of pre-eclampsia at St. Mary’s hospital lacor, a low-resource setting in northern Uganda, a prospective cohort study
Background: Pre-eclampsia is the second leading cause of maternal death in Uganda. However, mothers report to the hospitals late due to health care challenges. Therefore, we developed and validated the prediction models for prenatal screening for pre-eclampsia. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study at St. Mary’s hospital lacor in Gulu city. We included 1,004 […]
What is the role of community capabilities for maternal health? An exploration of community capabilities as determinants to institutional deliveries in Bangladesh, India, and Uganda
Background: While community capabilities are recognized as important factors in developing resilient health systems and communities, appropriate metrics for these have not yet been developed. Furthermore, the role of community capabilities on access to maternal health services has been underexplored. In this paper, we summarize the development of a community capability score based on the […]
Quality Improvement Interventions for Early HIV Infant Diagnosis in Northeastern Uganda
Introduction. Early infant diagnosis (EID) of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) ensures prompt treatment and infant survival. In Kaabong Hospital, 20% of HIV exposed infants (HEIs) had access to HIV diagnosis by eight weeks. We aimed to improve EID of HIV by deoxyribonucleic acid-polymerase chain reaction (DNA-PCR) testing by eight weeks from 20 to 100% between […]
Intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in pregnancy: A new delivery system and its effect on maternal health and pregnancy outcomes in Uganda
Objective: To assess whether traditional birth attendants, drug-shop vendors, community reproductive-health workers, or adolescent peer mobilizers could administer intermittent preventive treatment (IPTp) for malaria with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine to pregnant women. Methods: A non-randomized community trial was implemented in 21 community clusters (intervention) and four clusters where health units provided routine IPTp (control). The primary outcome measures […]
Mismatched ambition, execution and outcomes: Implementing maternal death surveillance and response system in Mtwara region, Tanzania
Background Since 2015, Tanzania has been implementing the Maternal Death Surveillance and Response (MDSR) system. The system employs interactions of health providers and managers to identify, notify and review maternal deaths and recommend strategies for preventing further deaths. We aimed to analyse perceptions and experiences of health providers and managers in implementing the MDSR system. […]
What price a welcome? Understanding structure agency in the delivery of respectful midwifery care in Uganda
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of research on mothers and midwives’ understanding of the concept of respectful care in the Ugandan public health settings. It focusses on one aspect of respect; namely communication that is perhaps least resource-dependent. The research found endemic levels of disrespect and tries to […]
Ugandan opinion-leaders’ knowledge and perceptions of unsafe abortion
While laws in Uganda surrounding abortion remain contradictory, a frequent interpretation of the law is that abortion is only allowed to save the woman’s life. Nevertheless abortion occurs frequently under unsafe conditions at a rate of 54 abortions per 1000 women of reproductive age annually, taking a large toll on women’s health. There are an […]
Postnatal Care Experiences and Barriers to Care Utilization for Home- and Facility-Delivered Newborns in Uganda and Zambia
Objectives The objective of this study was to examine experiences with, and barriers to, accessing postnatal care services, in the context of a maternal health initiative. Methods As part of a larger evaluation of an initiative to promote facility deliveries in 8 rural districts in Uganda and Zambia, 48 focus groups were held with recently-delivered […]
A cross sectional study evaluating screening using maternal anthropometric measurements for outcomes of childbirth in Ugandan mothers at term
Background: Birth related newborn and maternal mortality/morbidity remains high in most of sub-Saharan Africa compared to the rest of the world. In this low income region there is a need for valid, low cost, easy to use mass screening tests. This study looked at the screening value of maternal: height, weight and pelvis height, for […]
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 […]
