Postpartum depressive symptoms in the context of high social adversity and reproductive health threats: A population-based study
Background: Postpartum depression is an important but neglected public health issue in low- and middle-income countries. The aim of this study was to assess postpartum depressive (PPD) symptoms and associated factors in a rural Ethiopian setting characterized by high social adversity and reproductive health threats. We hypothesized that infant gender preference would be associated with […]
Factors associated with female genital mutilation in Burkina Faso and its policy implications
Background: Female genital mutilation (FGM) usually undertaken between the ages of 1-9 years and is widely practised in some part of Africa and by migrants from African countries in other parts of the world. Laws prohibit FGM in almost every country. FGM can cause immediate complications (pain, bleeding and infection) and delayed complications (sexual, obstetric, […]
Option B+ Program for the Prevention of Vertical Transmission of HIV: A Case Study in Johannesburg, South Africa
Background: South Africa’s National Department of Health adopted WHO’s 2013 consolidated guidelines on ARVs for HIV treatment and prevention in 2015, including changes for Prevention from Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) through Option B+, aimed to reduce the HIV prevalence rate amongst women by placing them on lifelong treatment, irrespective of their CD4 count. As a result, […]
Fathers’ Financial Support of Children in a Low Income Community in South Africa
We used data from the Birth to Twenty Cohort study to understand children’s receipt of financial support from their fathers in a low income, Black community in urban South Africa. Specifically, we (1) described fathers’ financial support over the life course of children; (2) estimated survival probabilities of receiving support for all children and notreceiving […]
Community perspectives on HIV, violence and health surveillance in rural South Africa: A participatory pilot study
Background South Africa faces a complex burden of disease consisting of infectious and non-communicable conditions, injury and interpersonal violence, and maternal and child mortality. Inequalities in income and opportunity push disease burdens towards vulnerable populations, a situation to which the health system struggles to respond. There is an urgent need for health planning to account […]
Factors influencing men’s involvement in antenatal care services: A cross-sectional study in a low resource setting, Central Tanzania
Background: Men’s involvement can impact the delays in the decision to seek health care and in reaching a health facility, which are contributing causes for increased maternal mortality. Despite of the call to involve men in antenatal care, their participation is not well understood. This study aimed to determine the level of men’s involvement in […]
Effect of community-based health insurance on healthcare-seeking behavior for childhood illnesses among rural mothers in Aneded district, east Gojjam zone, Amhara region, northwest Ethiopia
Background: Community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes have been implemented in developing countries to facilitate modern medical care access. However, studies conducted on the effect of CBHI on healthcare-seeking behavior (HSB) have been limited and revealed inconsistent results. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the effect of CBHI on mothers’ HSB for common under-five childhood illnesses. […]
Adolescent and adult first time mothers’ health seeking practices during pregnancy and early motherhood in Wakiso district, central Uganda
Background: Maternal health services have a potentially critical role in the improvement of reproductive health. In order to get a better understanding of adolescent mothers’needs we compared health seeking practices of first time adolescent and adult mothers during pregnancy and early motherhood in Wakiso district, Uganda. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted between May […]
Factors associated with delivery outside a health facility: Cross-sectional study in rural Malawi
Objective: To identify factors associated with delivery outside a health facility in rural Malawi. Method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in Balaka, Dedza, Mchinji and Ntcheu districts in Malawi in 2013 among women who had completed a pregnancy 12 months prior to the day of the survey. Multilevel logistic regression was used to assess factors associated […]
Experiences of frontline nurses with adverse medical events in a regional referral hospital in northern Ghana: A cross-sectional study
Background: Adverse medical events (AMEs) are threats to delivery of quality healthcare services, particularly in resource-poor settings such as Ghana. In sub-Saharan Africa, 30% of deaths are attributed to AMEs and a significant proportion of these events are not reported. This study explored personal experiences of nurses with AMEs and the constraints to reporting them. […]
