Determinants and preventive practices of midwives and physicians toward vertical transmission of hepatitis B in Ghana: a cross-sectional survey
Introduction: countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Ghana, are disproportionately affected by hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection. In these areas, mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) is an essential mode of HBV transmission. Evidently, timely hepatitis B birth dose vaccination remains an effective preventive intervention against MTCT of HBV. Considering that midwives and physicians are the primary care providers […]
An Empirical Analysis of the Effects of Household Demographics on Diarrhea Morbidity in Children Aged 0 to 48 Months in Namibia
Many of the simple and low-cost child diarrhea morbidities interventions, such as adequate home care, access to health care services, and improved sanitation and hygiene practices, are far beyond the reach of many households in developing countries, and Namibia is not an exception to this. In this study, a quantitative cross-sectional study design using a […]
Contraceptive nonuse among women in Uganda: a comparative assessment of predictors across regions
Background: Contraceptive nonuse has diverse effects on women, such as unintended pregnancies and births that result in high fertility and poor maternal health outcomes. In Uganda, knowledge on contraceptive use is high, amidst undesirably high contraceptive nonuse and scarce literature on predictors of contraceptive nonuse across regions. This study assessed factors associated with contraceptive nonuse […]
Between the city and the farm: Food environments in artisanal mining communities in Upper Guinea
Objective: Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is a widespread livelihood in low- and middle-income countries; however, many in ASM communities face high levels of poverty and malnutrition. The food environments in ASM communities have non-agricultural rural characteristics that differ from those in urban and agricultural rural areas examined in much existing food environment literature. Design: […]
A qualitative study to explore strategies to improve the Road to Health Application for maternal and child health outcomes in South Africa
Background: The Road to Health Application (RTHA) is essentially a digitalized version of the National Department of Health’s Road to Health book, and a hand-printed booklet given to mothers at the birth of each baby. The RTHA, like the booklet, provides guidelines for maternal and child health outcomes, with the goal of creating a database […]
Factors associated with the use of mosquito bed nets: Results from two cross-sectional household surveys in Zambézia Province, Mozambique
Background: Malaria remains a major threat to some 3.2 billion persons globally. Malaria contributes heavily to the overall disease burden in Mozambique and is considered endemic. A cornerstone of Mozambique’s vector control strategy has been to strive for universal coverage of insecticide-treated nets (ITN). Methods: The study is a population-based cross-sectional survey of female heads-of-household […]
Providing HIV Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) Services to Migrants During the COVID-19 Pandemic in South Africa: Insights of Healthcare Providers
Background: In March 2020, COVID-19 entered South Africa, resulting in 2.9 million cases, the country took preventative and precautionary measures to control the spread of COVID-19 infection. These measures limited population mobility especially for migrant women living with HIV (WLWH) and the provision of PMTCT services. The purpose of this research was to explore the […]
Agricultural and finance intervention increased dietary intake and weight of children living in HIV-affected households in Western Kenya
We tested whether a multisectoral household agricultural and finance intervention increased the dietary intake and improved the nutritional status of HIV-affected children. Two hospitals in rural Kenya were randomly assigned to be either the intervention or the control arm. The intervention comprised a human-powered water pump, microfinance loan for farm commodities, and training in sustainable […]
Applying a gender lens to understand pathways through care for acutely ill young children in Kenyan urban informal settlements
Background: In many African settings, gender strongly influences household treatment-seeking and decision-making for childhood illnesses. While mothers are often the primary engagers with health facilities, their independence in illness-related decisions is shaped by various factors. Drawing on a gender lens, we explored treatment-seeking pathways pre- and post-hospital admission for acutely ill young children living in […]
Full immunization coverage and associated factors among children age 12-23 months in Ethiopia: systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies
Background: Millions of children in developing countries remained unvaccinated and under-vaccinated. This study was aimed to determine the pooled full vaccination coverage and associated factors in Ethiopia. Methods: This review and meta-analysis were included observational studies conducted from 2013 to 2020. The international online databases as well as gray literatures were retrieved from April 15 […]
