Predicting the impact of COVID-19 and the potential impact of the public health response on disease burden in Uganda
The COVID-19 pandemic and public health “lockdown” responses in sub-Saharan Africa, including Uganda, are now widely reported. Although the impact of COVID-19 on African populations has been relatively light, it is feared that redirecting focus and prioritization of health systems to fight COVID-19 may have an impact on access to non–COVID-19 diseases. We applied age-based […]
A qualitative study exploring the determinants of maternal health service uptake in post-conflict Burundi and Northern Uganda
Background: Armed conflict has been described as an important contributor to the social determinants of health and a driver of health inequity, including maternal health. These conflicts may severely reduce access to maternal health services and, as a consequence, lead to poor maternal health outcomes for a period extending beyond the conflict itself. As such, […]
Social and cultural barriers to husbands’ involvement in maternal health in rural Gambia
Introduction: While many studies have documented a number of socio-cultural barriers to male involvement in maternal health, in The Gambia very little information is known about the social and cultural practices that characterized male involvement in maternal health. This study aims to explore some of the underlying social and cultural factors affecting husbands’ involvement in […]
Barriers to access and utilization of emergency obstetric care at health facilities in sub-Saharan Africa-a systematic review protocol
Background: Nearly 15% of all pregnancies end in fatal perinatal obstetric complications including bleeding, infections, hypertension, obstructed labor, and complications of abortion. Between 1990 and 2015, an estimated 10.7 million women died due to obstetric complications. Almost all of these deaths (99%) happened in developing countries, and 66% of maternal deaths were attributed to sub-Saharan […]
Development and testing of a composite index to monitor the continuum of maternal health service delivery at provincial and district level in South Africa
Introduction The continuum of care is a recommended framework for comprehensive health service delivery for maternal health, and it integrates health system and social determinants of health. There is a current lack of knowledge on a measurement approach to monitor performance on the framework. In this study we aim to develop and test a composite […]
Perceived barriers to maternal and newborn health services delivery: A qualitative study of health workers and community members in low and middle-income settings
Objectives In considering explanations for poor maternal and newborn health outcomes, many investigations have focused on the decision-making patterns and actions of expectant mothers and families, as opposed to exploring the â € supply side’ (health service provider) barriers. Thus, we examined the health system factors impacting on access to and delivery of quality maternal […]
Bottleneck analysis at district level to illustrate gaps within the district health system in Uganda
Background: Poor quality of care and access to effective and affordable interventions have been attributed to constraints and bottlenecks within and outside the health system. However, there is limited understanding of health system barriers to utilization and delivery of appropriate, highimpact, and cost-effective interventions at the point of service delivery in districts and sub-districts in […]
Intergenerational impacts of maternal mortality: Qualitative findings from rural Malawi
Background: Maternal mortality, although largely preventable, remains unacceptably high in developing countries such as Malawi and creates a number of intergenerational impacts. Few studies have investigated the far-reaching impacts of maternal death beyond infant survival. This study demonstrates the short- and long-term impacts of maternal death on children, families, and the community in order to […]
Prevalence and Predictors of “Small Size” Babies in Ethiopia: In-depth Analysis of the Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey, 2011
BACKGROUND: Low Birth Weight (LBW) babies account for nearly 80% of neonatal deaths globally. In Ethiopia, only 5% of them are weighed at birth. This study analyzes the prevalence and key proximate determinants of reported infant size, and its validity to use as a proxy indicator for low birth weight inthe Ethiopian context. Data source: […]
Global, regional, and national levels of maternal mortality, 1990–2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015
Background In transitioning from the Millennium Development Goal to the Sustainable Development Goal era, it is imperative to comprehensively assess progress toward reducing maternal mortality to identify areas of success, remaining challenges, and frame policy discussions. We aimed to quantify maternal mortality throughout the world by underlying cause and age from 1990 to 2015. Methods […]
