Coverage and equity of maternal and newborn health care in rural Nigeria, Ethiopia and India
BACKGROUND: Despite progress toward meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, a large burden of maternal and neonatal mortality persists for the most vulnerable people in rural areas. We assessed coverage, coverage change and inequity for 8 maternal and newborn health care indicators in parts of rural Nigeria, Ethiopia and India. METHODS: We examined coverage changes and […]
Predictors of malnutrition among pregnant women in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Reproductive aged women are especially vulnerable to protein energy deficiency and under nutrition. Malnutrition is the underlying cause of significant maternal morbidity and mortality. In addition, malnutrition among women is a major risk factor for adverse birth outcomes. Its extent and consequences is highly prevalent in developing countries. This major burden can be reduced […]
Psychosocial influences on pregnancy and childbirth behaviours in north-western Nigeria: A cross-sectional analysis
Antenatal care (ANC) and facility delivery are essential maternal health services, but uptake remains low in north-western Nigeria. This study aimed to assess the psychosocial influences on pregnancy and childbirth behaviours in Nigeria. Data were from a cross-sectional population-based survey of randomly sampled women with a child under 2 years conducted in Kebbi, Sokoto and […]
Short message service communication improves exclusive breastfeeding and early postpartum contraception in a low- to middle-income country setting: a randomised trial
Objective: To assess the effect of short message service (SMS) communication on facility delivery, exclusive breastfeeding (EBF), and contraceptive use. Design: Mobile WACh was a three-arm unblinded individually randomised controlled trial. Setting: A public sector maternal child health (MCH) clinic in Nairobi, Kenya. Population: Three hundred women attending antenatal care were randomised, 100 to each […]
Can a community-based maternal care package in rural Ethiopia increase the use of health facilities for childbirth and reduce the stillbirth rate?
Objective: To measure the impact of a maternal health package on health facility delivery and stillbirth rates. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study in Ethiopia where a maternal package was integrated into eight health centers across three regions. The package included trained midwives with a mentoring program, transport for referral, and equipment and accommodation for […]
Maternal mental health in primary care in five low- and middle-income countries: A situational analysis
Background: The integration of maternal mental health into primary health care has been advocated to reduce the mental health treatment gap in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study reports findings of a cross-country situation analysis on maternal mental health and services available in five LMICs, to inform the development of integrated maternal mental health […]
Piecing Together the Maternal Death Puzzle through Narratives: The Three Delays Model Revisited
Background: In Malawi maternal mortality continues to be a major public health challenge. Going beyond the numbers to form a more complete view of why women die is critical to improving access to and quality of emergency obstetric care. The objective of the current study was to identify the socio-cultural and facility-based factors that contributed […]
Quality of maternal and newborn health care in Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study
Background: Despite reports of universal access to and modest utilization of maternal and newborn health services in Ethiopia, mothers and newborns continue to die from preventable causes. Studies indicate this could be due to poor quality of care provided in health systems. Evidences show that high quality health care prevents more than half of all […]
Risk factors for maternal mortality in rural tigray, northern Ethiopia: A case-control study
Background Maternal mortality continues to have devastating impacts in many societies, where it constitutes a leading cause of death, and thus remains a core issue in international development. Nevertheless, individual determinants of maternal mortality are often unclear and subject to local variation. This study aims to characterise individual risk factors for maternal mortality in Tigray, […]
Characterisation of induced abortion and consequences to women’s health at Hospital Central do Huambo–Angola
To characterise patients with abortion in Huambo, Angola, we have undertaken a descriptive, longitudinal, prospective survey. A structured questionnaire was applied to 715 patients. The study variables were grouped in socio-demographic and clinical-epidemiological variables. There were 29.8% women were aged 20–24, 45.6% had primary education, 41.1% were single and 26.9% worked as a non-formal salesperson. […]
