Seeking safety and empathy: Adolescent health seeking behavior during pregnancy and early motherhood in central Uganda
Purpose: To explore adolescent health seeking behavior during pregnancy and early motherhood in order to contribute to health policy formulation and improved access to health care. This will in long-term have an impact on the reduction of morbidity and mortality among adolescent mothers and their newborns. Methods: This was a qualitative study that employed focus […]
Home visits by community health workers for pregnant mothers and newborns: Coverage plateau in Malawi
Background Home visits by community health workers (CHWs) during pregnancy and soon after delivery are recommended to improve newborn survival. However, as the roles of CHWs expand, there are concerns regarding the capacity of community health systems to deliver high effective coverage of home visits. The WHO’s Rapid Access Expansion (RAcE) program supported the Malawi […]
Low rate of early vertical transmission of HIV supports the feasibility of effective implementation of the national PMTCT guidelines in routine practice of referral hospitals in Cameroon
Background: Vertical (VT) transmission of HIV remains a public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective: To investigate the VT rate and factors associated with transmission in routine practice in three referral hospitals in Cameroon. Methods: All HIV-infected mothers who delivered in maternity wards or sought paediatric services during the first postnatal week from November 2007 […]
The factors associated with under-five mortality in Ethiopia
Background: Under-five mortality refers to the likelihood of dying between the ages of birth and five. The number of children under the age of five who die each year continues to climb worldwide. Over the previous few decades, the industry has made great progress in reducing mortality among children under the age of five. The […]
A new use for an old tool: Maternity waiting homes to improve equity in rural childbirth care. Results from a cross-sectional hospital and community survey in Tanzania
Limited quality of childbirth care in sub-Saharan Africa primarily affects the poor. Greater quality is available in facilities providing advanced management of childbirth complications. We aimed to determine whether Maternity Waiting Homes (MWHs) may be a tool to improve access of lower socio-economic women to such facilities. Secondary analysis of a cross-sectional hospital survey from […]
Prevalence and determinants of unintended pregnancy among women in Nairobi, Kenya
Background: The prevalence of unintended pregnancy in Kenya continues to be high. The 2003 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) showed that nearly 50% of unmarried women aged 15-19 and 45% of the married women reported their current pregnancies as mistimed or unwanted. The 2008-09 KDHS showed that 43% of married women in Kenya reported […]
Using community pharmacies to expand access to screening for noncommunicable diseases in suburban Ghana—A facility-based survey on client needs and acceptability
Background: Many of the 28 million deaths from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in low- and middle-income countries each year could be prevented through early detection and intervention. The introduction of screening for NCDs in community pharmacies (CPs) in Ghana could enhance access to early detection. Methods: We surveyed clients in three districts in suburban Ghana to […]
Factors associated with socio-demographic characteristics and antenatal care and iron supplement use in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Senegal
Antenatal care (ANC) offers remarkable opportunities to reach a large number of women with effective nutrition and health interventions, including iron (Fe) supplementation. However, all women do not equally seek nor benefit from ANC. We aimed to identify characteristics associated with ANC and Fe use among women in hard-to-reach areas in Afar, Ethiopia; Sedhiou and […]
Cost-effectiveness of peer counselling for the promotion of exclusive breastfeeding in Uganda
Background Community based breastfeeding promotion programmes have been shown to be effective in increasing breastfeeding prevalence. However, there is limited data on the cost-effectiveness of these programmes in sub-Saharan Africa. This paper evaluates the cost-effectiveness of a breastfeeding promotion intervention targetingmothers and their 0 to 6 month old children. Methods Data were obtained from a […]
Realities and challenges of a five year follow up of mother and child pairs on a PMTCT program in Zimbabwe
Background: Complete follow up is an essential component of observational cohorts irrespective of the type of disease. Objectives: To describe five years follow up of mother and child pairs on a PMTCT program, highlighting loss to follow up (LTFU) and mortality (attrition). Study Design: A cohort of pregnant women was enrolled from the national PMTCT […]