Factors associated with choice of antenatal, delivery and postnatal services between HIV positive and HIV negative women in Zambia
Background: Previous research has shown that developing countries account for the majority of maternal deaths around the world. Relatively high maternal mortality in developing countries has been linked to high HIV prevalence rates in these countries. Several studies have shown that women living with HIV are more vulnerable and are thus more likely to die […]
Effectiveness of Integrated Maternal Nutrition Intervention Package on Birth Weight in Rwanda
Inadequate maternal nutrition before and during pregnancy is a principal risk factor for poor fetal development, resulting in low birth weight (LBW) and subsequently, poor child growth. Most studies focus on the impact of nutritional interventions after birth while only a few interventions consider integrated nutrition service packages. Therefore, there is limited evidence on whether […]
Maternal and neonatal implementation for equitable systems. A study design paper
Background: Evidence on effective ways of improving maternal and neonatal health outcomes is widely available. The challenge that most low-income countries grapple with is implementation at scale and sustainability. Objectives: The study aimed at improving access to quality maternal and neonatal health services in a sustainable manner by using a participatory action research approach. Methods: […]
Persistent barriers to care; a qualitative study to understand women’s experiences in areas served by the midwives service scheme in Nigeria
Background: The Nigerian Midwives Service Scheme (MSS) is an ambitious human resources project created in 2009 to address supply side barriers to accessing care. Key features include the recruitment and deployment of newly qualified, unemployed and retired midwives to rural primary healthcare centres (PHCs) to ensure improved access to skilled care. This study aimed to […]
Effectiveness of a large-scale, sustained and comprehensive community health worker program in improving population health: the experience of an urban health district in South Africa
Introduction: South Africa is an upper middle-income country with wide wealth inequality. It faces a quadruple burden of disease and poor health outcomes, with access to appropriate and adequate health care a challenge for millions of South Africans. The introduction of large-scale, comprehensive community health worker (CHW) programs in the country, within the context of […]
Potential effectiveness of Community Health Strategy to promote exclusive breastfeeding in urban poor settings in Nairobi, Kenya: A quasi-experimental study
Early nutrition is critical for later health and sustainable development. We determined potential effectiveness of the Kenyan Community Health Strategy in promoting exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) in urban poor settings in Nairobi, Kenya. We used a quasi-experimental study design, based on three studies [Pre-intervention (2007-2011; n=5824), Intervention (2012-2015; n=1110) and Comparison (2012-2014; n=487)], which followed mother-child […]
Effect of integrated nutrition-sensitive and nutrition-specific intervention package on maternal malnutrition among pregnant women in Rwanda
Maternal undernutrition remains a major public health concern in Rwanda despite significant gains and progress. An integration of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions was implemented in five districts of Rwanda to improve maternal and child nutrition. The package included nutrition education and counselling, promotion of agricultural productivity, promotion of financial literacy/economic resilience and provision of Water, Hygiene and […]
The impact of an mHealth monitoring system on health care utilization by mothers and children: An evaluation using routine health information in Rwanda
Maternal and child mortality rates remain unacceptably high globally, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. A popular approach to counter these high rates is interventions delivered using mobile phones (mHealth). However, few mHealth interventions have been implemented nationwide and there has been little evaluation of their effectiveness, particularly at scale. Therefore, we evaluated the Rwanda RapidSMS programme […]
Maternal HIV infection associated with small-for-gestational age infants but not preterm births: Evidence from rural South Africa
Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is prevalent in many countries where small-for-gestational age (SGA) and premature delivery are also common. However, the associations between maternal HIV, preterm delivery and SGA infants remain unclear. We estimate the prevalence of SGA and preterm (
Mobilizing communities to improve maternal health: Results of an intervention in rural Zambia
Objective: To determine whether a complex community intervention in rural Zambia improved understanding of maternal health and increased use of maternal health-care services. Methods: The intervention took place in six rural districts selected by the Zambian Ministry of Health. It involved community discussions on safe pregnancy and delivery led by trained volunteers and the provision […]
