Exploring the care provided to mothers and children by community health workers in South Africa: Missed opportunities to provide comprehensive care
Background: Community health workers (CHWs) provide maternal and child health services to communities in many low and middle-income countries, including South Africa (SA). CHWs can improve access to important health interventions for isolated and vulnerable communities. In this study we explored the performance of CHWs providing maternal and child health services at household level and […]
Improving the coverage of the PMTCT programme through a participatory quality improvement intervention in South Africa
Background: Despite several years of implementation, prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) programmes in many resource poor settings are failing to reach the majority of HIV positive women. We report on a data driven participatory quality improvement intervention implemented in a high HIV prevalence district in South Africa. Methods: A participatory quality improvement intervention was implemented […]
Factors associated with low birthweight in North Shewa zone, Central Ethiopia: Case-control study
Background: Low birthweight (LBW) is an important predictor of neonatal and post neonatal child morality. Though its risk factors have been extensively studied in the developed world; limited epidemiological evidence is available in developing countries including Ethiopia. The purpose of the study is to determine the risk factors of LBW in North Shewa zone, Central […]
Drivers of stunting reduction in Ethiopia: A country case study
Background: Chronic undernutrition in children continues to be a global public health concern. Ethiopia has documented a significant decline in the prevalence of childhood stunting, a measure of chronic undernutrition, over the last 20 y. Objectives: The aim of this research was to conduct a systematic assessment of the determinants that have driven child stunting […]
Implementation of an international standardized set of outcome indicators in pregnancy and childbirth in Kenya: Utilizing mobile technology to collect patient-reported outcomes
Background Limited data exist on health outcomes during pregnancy and childbirth in low- and middleincome countries. This is a pilot of an innovative data collection tool using mobile technology to collect patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) selected from the International Consortium of Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) Pregnancy and Childbirth Standard Set in Nairobi, Kenya. Methods Pregnant […]
Postnatal depression among Sudanese women: Prevalence and validation of the Edinburgh Postnatal depression scale at 3 months postpartum
Purpose: Postnatal depression (PND) rates in low-resource countries have reached levels between 4.9% and 59%. Maternal mental health has not been researched in Sudan, and there are no existing statistics on prevalence or significant risk factors for PND. Consequently, no screening test has been validated to screen for PND at the primary health care level. […]
Approximation of the Cox survival regression model by MCMC Bayesian Hierarchical Poisson modelling of factors associated with childhood mortality in Nigeria
The need for more pragmatic approaches to achieve sustainable development goal on childhood mortality reduction necessitated this study. Simultaneous study of the influence of where the children live and the censoring nature of children survival data is scarce. We identified the compositional and contextual factors associated with under-five (U5M) and infant (INM) mortality in Nigeria […]
The impact of strike action by Ghana registered nurses and midwives on the access to and utilization of healthcare services
Background As the largest professional group, nurses and midwives play instrumental roles in healthcare delivery, supporting the smooth administration and operation of the health system. Consequently, the withdrawal of nursing and midwifery services via strike action has direct and indirect detrimental effects on access to healthcare. Objective The current study examined the impact of strike […]
Effects of responsive caregiving and learning opportunities during pre-school ages on the association of early adversities and adolescent human capital: an analysis of birth cohorts in two middle-income countries
Background: Millions of children globally are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential because of early adversities. We hypothesised that responsive caregiving and learning opportunities, components of nurturing care, at pre-school ages might mitigate the effects of adversities. Methods: We analysed longitudinal birth cohort data from Brazil (1993 Pelotas Birth Cohort, n=632) and South […]
Effects of demand-side incentives in improving the utilisation of delivery services in Oyam District in northern Uganda: A quasi-experimental study
Background: We evaluated the effects and financial costs of two interventions with respect to utilisation of institutional deliveries and other maternal health services in Oyam District in Uganda. Methods: We conducted a quasi-experimental study involving intervention and comparable/control sub-counties in Oyam District for 12 months (January-December 2014). Participants were women receiving antenatal care, delivery and […]
