The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews recently published a qualitative evidence synthesis of factors that influence the provision of intrapartum and postnatal care by skilled birth attendants in low- and middle-income countries. Meeting the needs of health workers is essential to ensuring that women receive high quality maternity care…read more
Saving Lives During Health Worker Strikes: Lessons From Kenya
Posted onOver the past year, Kenya’s public health system has faced numerous health worker strikes. While political action is underway, what can health program managers do to prevent maternal and newborn deaths? Maternal and newborn health programs in Bungoma, Kenya have revealed effective strategies for safeguarding the health of pregnant women and newborns under challenging circumstances…read more
In Cambodia, Push to End Maternal Deaths in Remote Areas
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Building Momentum for the Expansion of Midwifery in Mexico and Beyond
Posted onIn 2015, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation launched an initiative to strengthen professional midwifery in Mexico, where roughly 23,000 traditional midwives provide care for less than 3% of the nearly 2.4 million births annually. Despite tremendous challenges, champions in Mexico and elsewhere are moving the needle towards adopting a midwifery model of care, illustrating the power of collaboration among passionate individuals to drive improvements in maternal health care quality…read more
Why Doesn’t Every Woman Deliver With a Birth Companion?
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There is strong evidence supporting the use of birth companions as providers of emotional support during labor to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes, as well as women’s experiences with maternity care. However, despite the substantial body of evidence and advocacy efforts surrounding this issue, many women across the globe do not have birth companions…read more
New Report Provides Snapshot of SRMNAH Workforce in East and Southern Africa
Posted onThe United Nations Population Fund recently published “The State of the World’s Midwifery: Analysis of the Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Adolescent Health (SRMNAH) Workforce in East & Southern Africa.” The report uses the framework of the 2014 State of the World’s Midwifery report to assess the SRMNAH workforce in 21 countries in the region…read more
South Sudan’s Mission to Help More Mothers Survive Childbirth
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As South Sudan grapples with a four-year civil war and persistent famine, it is also struggling with one of the highest maternal mortality ratios in the world. Health experts attribute the high rate of maternal deaths to an ailing health care system, lack of infrastructure and an acute shortage of skilled health workers…read more
Providing Equitable, High Quality Maternity Care in the Context of a Limited Health Workforce: Lessons From Nigeria
Posted onHow do developing countries facing severe shortages in well-trained, equitably distributed health workers ensure access to high quality maternal health care for all women? There are several potential solutions that may be feasible in the short-term, which are currently being tested in Nigeria…read more
Alarming Shortage of Health Personnel in Conflict-Affected Nigeria
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The United Nations Population Fund estimates that 1.7 million women affected by the conflict in Nigeria are of reproductive age, and some 276,000 of these women are likely to become pregnant this year. The violence has left more than 40% of health facilities either destroyed or badly damaged, and many doctors and nurses were forced to flee, creating a crisis for women who need maternal health care…read more
From Local Action to National Results: How Community Health Workers Are Helping to Improve Maternal Health in Rwanda
Posted onOne strategy that Rwanda has used to improve maternal health is engaging voluntary community health workers known as Animatrice de Santé Maternelle (ASMs). ASMs provide several services including health promotion and education, monitoring and reporting of maternal and newborn health indicators and accompaniment of pregnant women to health facilities…read more