Increasing the Utilization of Maternity Care: Does Demand-Side Financing Work?

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By: Sarah Hodin, MPH, CD(DONA), LCCE, National Senior Manager of Maternal Newborn Health Programs, Steward Health Care

In recent years, demand-side financial incentives have been increasingly used in low- and middle-income countries in an effort to address the well-documented economic barriers to maternal health care access and utilization. A recent systematic review examined the evidence on five types of incentives: conditional cash transfers, unconditional cash transfers, short-term cash payments, vouchers for maternity care services and vouchers for merit goods…read more

Breastfeeding as Family Teamwork

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By: Duncan Fisher, The Family Initiative

Research has shown that women who have support from their family, partner and broader social network are more likely to initiate and continue breastfeeding. Nevertheless, health care providers do not always engage with families very effectively. Studies in diverse global settings have demonstrated the benefit of engaging partners and families on breastfeeding practices…read more

John Snow, Inc. (JSI)

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