Household economic wealth management and antenatal care utilization among business women in the reproductive-age
We assessed the influence of wealth and selected socio-demographic characteristics on antenatal care (ANC) utilization among 900 women within the reproductive ages across eight rural communities in Delta State, Southern part of Nigeria. Both descriptive and predictive analyses were undertaken. The characteristics of the women were presented with the use of simple proportion and frequency. […]
Inequalities in maternal health care utilization in Benin: A population based cross-sectional study
Background: Ensuring equitable access to maternal health care including antenatal, delivery, postnatal services and fertility control methods, is one of the most critical challenges for public health sector. There are significant disparities in maternal health care indicators across many geographical locations, maternal, economic, socio-demographic factors in many countries in sub-Sahara Africa. In this study, we […]
Exploring new health markets: Experiences from informal providers of transport for maternal health services in Eastern Uganda
Background: Although a number of intermediate transport initiatives have been used in some developing countries, available evidence reveals a dearth of local knowledge on the effect of these rural informal transport mechanisms on access to maternal health care services, the cost of implementing such schemes and their scalability. This paper, attempts to provide insights into […]
Predictors of utilisation of skilled maternal healthcare in Lilongwe District, Malawi
Background: Despite numerous efforts to improve maternal and child health in Malawi, maternal and newborn mortality rates remain very high, with the country having one of the highest maternal mortality ratios globally. The aim of this study was to identify which individual factors best predict utilisation of skilled maternal healthcare in a sample of women […]
Utilizing mobile health and community informants to collect real-time health care data in extremely low resource environments
Background: Mobile health provides promising opportunities to perform population surveillance in rural, impoverished, or unstable communities. The objective of this study was to test the efficacy and accuracy of data collected by community informants in extreme low-resource environments using electronic surveys and mobile phones. Methods: We carried out a population-based, cross-sectional survey between October and […]
Growing inequities in maternal health in South Africa: A comparison of serial national household surveys
Background: Rates of maternal mortality and morbidity vary markedly, both between and within countries. Documenting these variations, in a very unequal society like South Africa, provides useful information to direct initiatives to improve services. The study describes inequalities over time in access to maternal health services in South Africa, and identifies differences in maternal health […]
Maternal and child health in Yushu, Qinghai Province, China
Introduction. Surmang, Qinghai Province is a rural nomadic Tibetan region in western China recently devastated by the 2010 Yushu earthquake; little information is available on access and coverage of maternal and child health services. Methods. A cross-sectional household survey was conducted in August 2004. 402 women of reproductive age (15-50) were interviewed regarding their pregnancy […]
Poor coverage and quality for poor women: Inequalities in quality antenatal care in nine East African countries
The use of quality antenatal care (ANC) improves maternal and newborn health outcomes. Ensuring equity in access to quality maternal health services is a priority agenda in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to assess inequalities in the use of quality ANC in nine East African countries using the most recent Demographic and Health […]
Cost effectiveness of medical devices to diagnose pre-eclampsia in low-resource settings
Background Maternal mortality remains a major health challenge facing developing countries, with pre-eclampsia accounting for up to 17% of maternal deaths. Diagnosis requires skilled health providers and devices that are appropriate for low-resource settings. This study presents the first cost-effectiveness analysis of multiple medical devices used to diagnose pre-eclampsia in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). […]
Improving maternal and newborn health care delivery in rural Amhara and Oromiya regions of Ethiopia through the maternal and newborn health in Ethiopia partnership
Introduction: In Ethiopia, rural residence and limited access to skilled providers and health services pose challenges for maternal and newborn survival. The Maternal Health in Ethiopia Partnership (MaNHEP) developed a community-based model of maternal and newborn health focusing on birth and the early postnatal period and positioned it for scale-up. MaNHEP’s 3-pronged intervention included community- […]
