Predictors of health care practitioners’ normative attitudes and practices towards sexual and reproductive health and rights: a cross-sectional study of participants from low-income countries enrolled in a capacity-building program
Background: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) is a concept of human rights applied to sexuality and reproduction. Suboptimal access to SRHR services in many low-income countries results in poor health outcomes. Sustainable development goals (3.7 and 5.6) give a new impetus to the aspiration of universal access to high-quality SRHR services. Indispensable stakeholders […]
Impact of the Safe Childbirth Checklist on health worker childbirth practices in Luapula province of Zambia: A pre-post study
Background: A strong evidence base exists regarding routine and emergency services that can effectively prevent or reduce maternal and new-born mortality. However, even when skilled providers care for women in labour, many of the recommended services are not provided, despite being available. Barriers to the provision of appropriate childbirth services may include lack of availability […]
Individual and contextual factors associated with low childhood immunisation coverage in Sub-Saharan Africa: A multilevel analysis
Background: In 2010, more than six million children in sub-Saharan Africa did not receive the full series of three doses of the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine by one year of age. An evidence-based approach to addressing this burden of un-immunised children requires accurate knowledge of the underlying factors. We therefore developed and tested a model of childhood […]
Direct and opportunity costs related to utilizing maternity waiting homes in rural Zambia
Aim: To assess the direct and opportunity costs involved in utilising maternity waiting homes. Method: A cross-sectional admission survey administered to women who used ten maternity waiting homes across two rural districts in Zambia. A total of 3,796 women participated in the survey. Descriptive analysis was conducted on three domains of the data: demographic characteristics […]
Travel time and perinatal mortality after emergency caesarean sections: An evaluation of the 2-hour proximity indicator in Sierra Leone
Introduction Longer travel times are associated with increased adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. Geospatial modelling has been increasingly used to estimate geographic proximity in emergency obstetric care. In this study, we aimed to assess the correlation between modelled and patient-reported travel times and to evaluate its clinical relevance. Methods Women who delivered by caesarean section […]
Protocol for a sequential, prospective metaanalysis to describe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the pregnancy and postpartum periods
We urgently need answers to basic epidemiological questions regarding SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant and postpartum women and its effect on their newborns. While many national registries, health facilities, and research groups are collecting relevant data, we need a collaborative and methodologically rigorous approach to better combine these data and address knowledge gaps, especially those related […]
Prevalence of iodine deficiency among pregnant women in Gwembe and Sinazongwe districts of Southern Province, Zambia: a cross-sectional study
Background: Maternal iodine deficiency is one of the common causes of morbidity and mortality during pregnancy. Maternal iodine deficiency during pregnancy is associated with a number of adverse outcomes such as abortion, stillbirth, congenital anomalies, perinatal mortality and irreversible mental retardation. A study conducted in Zambia among pregnant women in 2013 on the prevalence of […]
The Global Network Maternal Newborn Health Registry: a multi-country, community-based registry of pregnancy outcomes
Background: The Global Network for Women’s and Children’s Health Research (Global Network) conducts clinical trials in resource-limited countries through partnerships among U.S. investigators, international investigators based in in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) and a central data coordinating center. The Global Network’s objectives include evaluating low-cost, sustainable interventions to improve women’s and children’s health in […]
Evaluation of a novel device for the management of high blood pressure and shock in pregnancy in low-resource settings: Study protocol for a stepped-wedge cluster-randomised controlled trial (CRADLE-3 trial)
Background: Obstetric haemorrhage, sepsis and pregnancy hypertension account for more than 50% of maternal deaths worldwide. Early detection and effective management of these conditions relies on vital signs. The Microlife® CRADLE Vital Sign Alert (VSA) is an easy-to-use, accurate device that measures blood pressure and pulse. It incorporates a traffic-light early warning system that alerts […]
Cost-effectiveness of peer counselling for the promotion of exclusive breastfeeding in Uganda
Background Community based breastfeeding promotion programmes have been shown to be effective in increasing breastfeeding prevalence. However, there is limited data on the cost-effectiveness of these programmes in sub-Saharan Africa. This paper evaluates the cost-effectiveness of a breastfeeding promotion intervention targetingmothers and their 0 to 6 month old children. Methods Data were obtained from a […]
