Mental health experiences of mothers in Jos, Nigeria: An interpretative phenomenological analysis
Objectives: There is an increasing mental health disease burden in mothers with infants and young children, especially in low- and middle-income countries such as Nigeria. Children of distressed mothers suffer early-life exposure from the effects of maternal distress which contributes to the risk of physical and mental health problems in their childhood and beyond. This […]
Experiences of mothers and significant others in accessing comprehensive healthcare in the first 1000 days of life post-conception during COVID-19 in rural Uganda
Background: COVID-19 presented an unprecedented global public health challenge because of its rapid and relentless spread, and many countries instituted lockdowns to prevent the spread of infection. Although this strategy may have been appropriate to reduce infection, it presented unintended difficulties in rural Uganda, especially in maternal and born newborn care. For example, some services […]
Trust me! Parental embodied mentalizing predicts infant cognitive and language development in longitudinal follow-up
Children’s cognitive and language development is a central aspect of human development and has wide and long-standing impact. The parent-infant relationship is the chief arena for the infant to learn about the world. Studies reveal associations between quality of parental care and children’s cognitive and language development when the former is measured as maternal sensitivity. […]
Maternal and health care workers’ perceptions of the effects of exclusive breastfeeding by HIV positive mothers on maternal and infant health in Blantyre, Malawi
Background: HIV-positive mothers are likely to exclusively breastfeed if they perceive exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) beneficial to them and their infants. Nevertheless, very little is known in Malawi about HIV-positive mothers’ perceptions regarding EBF. In order to effectively promote EBF among these mothers, it is important to first understand their perceptions on benefits of exclusive breastfeeding. […]
Intended and unintended effects: Community perspectives on a performance-based financing programme in Malawi
Background Several performance-based financing (PBF) evaluations have been undertaken in low-income countries, yet few have examined community perspectives of care amid PBF programme implementation. We assessed community members’ perspectives of Support for Service Delivery Integration – Performance-Based Incentives (‘SSDI-PBI’), a PBF intervention in Malawi, and explored some of the unintended effects that emerged amid implementation. […]
Perceptions about the cultural practices of male partners during postpartum care in rural Tanzania: A qualitative study
Background: Men play an important role in maternal health. The postpartum period is a critical stage, yet there is a scarcity of research that explores men’s involvement during this stage. Objective: The aim of the study was to explore male partners’ perceptions of the cultural practices during postpartum care in rural Tanzania. Methods: Fourteen focus […]
Maternal depression and child psychopathology among Attendees at a Child Neuropsychiatric Clinic in Abeokuta, Nigeria: A cross sectional study
Background: Children with recognized, diagnosable mental and neurological disorders are in addition prone to emotional and behavioral problems which transcend their specific diagnostic labels. In accessing care, these children are almost invariably accompanied by caregivers (usually mothers) who may also have mental health problems, notably depression. The relationship between child and maternal psychopathology has however […]
Quality of maternal obstetric and neonatal care in low-income countries: Development of a composite index
Background: In low-income countries, studies demonstrate greater access and utilization of maternal and neonatal health services, yet mortality rates remain high with poor quality increasingly scrutinized as a potential point of failure in achieving expected goals. Comprehensive measures reflecting the multi-dimensional nature of quality of care could prove useful to quality improvement. However, existing tools […]
The uptake of key Essential Nutrition Action (ENA) messages and its predictors among mothers of children aged 6–24 months in Southern Ethiopia, 2021: A community-based crossectional study
Background Essential nutrition action(ENA) is a framework for managing advocacy, establishing a foundation, and implementing a comprehensive package of preventive nutritional activities. Essential Nutrition Actions study studies provide current information on each nutrition action, allowing health systems to focus more on nutrition, which is critical in tackling the “double burden” of malnutrition: underweight and overweight. […]
On measuring and decomposing inequality of opportunity in access to health services among Tunisian children: A new approach for public policy
Background: The early years in children’s life are the key to physical, cognitive-language, and, socio-emotional skills development. So, it is of paramount importance in this period to be interested in different indicators that would influence the child’s health. Methods: This paper measures inequality of opportunities among Tunisian children concerning access to nutritional and healthy services […]
