Experiences and perceptions of care-seeking for febrile illness among caregivers, pregnant women, and health providers in eight districts of Madagascar.

BACKGROUND: Prompt diagnosis and treatment of malaria contributes to reduced morbidity, particularly among children and pregnant women; however, in Madagascar, care-seeking for febrile illness is often delayed. To describe factors influencing decisions for prompt care-seeking among caregivers of children aged < 15 years and pregnant women, a mixed-methods assessment was conducted with providers (HP), community health volunteers (CHV) and community members. METHODS: One health district from each of eight malaria-endemic zones of Madagascar were purposefully selected based on reported higher malaria transmission. Within districts, one urban and one rural community were randomly selected for participation. In-depth interviews (IDI) and focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted with caregivers, pregnant women, CHVs and HPs in these 16 communities to describe practices and, for HPs, system characteristics that support or inhibit care-seeking. Knowledge tests on malaria case management guidelines were administered to HPs, and logistics management systems were reviewed. RESULTS: Participants from eight rural and eight urban communities included 31 HPs from 10 public and 8 private Health Facilities (HF), five CHVs, 102 caregivers and 90 pregnant women. All participants in FGDs and IDIs reported that care-seeking for fever is frequently delayed until the ill person does not respond to home treatment or symptoms become more severe. Key care-seeking determinants for caregivers and pregnant women included cost, travel time and distance, and perception that the quality of care in HFs was poor. HPs felt that lack of commodities and heavy workloads hindered their ability to provide quality malaria care services. Malaria commodities were generally more available in public versus private HFs. CHVs were generally not consulted for malaria care and had limited commodities. CONCLUSIONS: Reducing cost and travel time to care and improving the quality of care may increase prompt care-seeking among vulnerable populations experiencing febrile illness. For patients, perceptions and quality of care could be improved with more reliable supplies, extended HF operating hours and staffing, supportive demeanors of HPs and seeking care with CHVs. For providers, malaria services could be improved by increasing the reliability of supply chains and providing additional staffing. CHVs may be an under-utilized resource for sick children.

A practice improvement package at scale to improve management of birth asphyxia in Rwanda: a before-after mixed methods evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Helping Babies Breathe (HBB) is a competency-based educational method for an evidence-based protocol to manage birth asphyxia in low resource settings. HBB has been shown to improve health worker skills and neonatal outcomes, but studies have documented problems with skills retention and little evidence of effectiveness at large scale in routine practice. This study examined the effect of complementing provider training with clinical mentorship and quality improvement as outlined in the second edition HBB materials. This "system-oriented" approach was implemented in all public health facilities (n = 172) in ten districts in Rwanda from 2015 to 2018. METHODS: A before-after mixed methods study assessed changes in provider skills and neonatal outcomes related to birth asphyxia. Mentee knowledge and skills were assessed with HBB objective structured clinical exam (OSCE) B pre and post training and during mentorship visits up to 1 year afterward. The study team extracted health outcome data across the entirety of intervention districts and conducted interviews to gather perspectives of providers and managers on the approach. RESULTS: Nearly 40 % (n = 772) of health workers in maternity units directly received mentorship. Of the mentees who received two or more visits (n = 456), 60 % demonstrated competence (received > 80% score on OSCE B) on the first mentorship visit, and 100% by the sixth. In a subset of 220 health workers followed for an average of 5 months after demonstrating competence, 98% maintained or improved their score. Three of the tracked neonatal health outcomes improved across the ten districts and the fourth just missed statistical significance: neonatal admissions due to asphyxia (37% reduction); fresh stillbirths (27% reduction); neonatal deaths due to asphyxia (13% reduction); and death within 30 min of birth (19% reduction, p = 0.06). Health workers expressed satisfaction with the clinical mentorship approach, noting improvements in confidence, patient flow within the maternity, and data use for decision-making. CONCLUSIONS: Framing management of birth asphyxia within a larger quality improvement approach appears to contribute to success at scale. Clinical mentorship emerged as a critical element. The specific effect of individual components of the approach on provider skills and health outcomes requires further investigation.

Malaria case management and elimination readiness in health facilities of five districts of Madagascar in 2018.

BACKGROUND: Madagascar's Malaria National Strategic Plan 2018-2022 calls for progressive malaria elimination beginning in low-incidence districts (< 1 case/1000 population). Optimizing access to prompt diagnosis and quality treatment and improving outbreak detection and response will be critical to success. A malaria elimination readiness assessment (MERA) was performed in health facilities (HFs) of selected districts targeted for malaria elimination. METHODS: A mixed methods survey was performed in September 2018 in five districts of Madagascar. Randomly selected HFs were assessed for availability of malaria commodities and frequency of training and supervision conducted. Health providers (HPs) and community health volunteers (CHVs) were interviewed, and outpatient consultations at HFs were observed. To evaluate elimination readiness, a composite score ranging from 0 to 100 was designed from all study tools and addressed four domains: (1) resource availability, (2) case management (CM), (3) data management and use, and (4) training, supervision, and technical assistance; scores were calculated for each HF catchment area and district based on survey responses. Stakeholder interviews on malaria elimination planning were conducted at national, regional and district levels. RESULTS: A quarter of the 35 HFs surveyed had no rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). Of 129 patients with reported or recorded fever among 300 consultations observed, HPs tested 56 (43%) for malaria. Three-quarters of the 35 HF managers reviewed data for trends. Only 68% of 41 HPs reported receiving malaria-specific training. Of 34 CHVs surveyed, 24% reported that treating fever was no longer among their responsibilities. Among treating CHVs, 13 (50%) reported having RDTs, and 11 (42%) had anti-malarials available. The average district elimination readiness score was 52 out of 100, ranging from 48 to 57 across districts. Stakeholders identified several challenges to commodity management, malaria CM, and epidemic response related to lack of training and funding disruptions. CONCLUSION: This evaluation highlighted gaps in malaria CM and elimination readiness in Madagascar to address during elimination planning. Strategies are needed that include training, commodity provision, supervision, and support for CHVs. The MERA can be repeated to assess progress in filling identified gaps and is a feasible tool that could be used to assess elimination targets in other countries.

Reaching the Youngest Moms and Dads: A Socio-Ecological View of Actors and Factors Influencing First-time Young Parents' Use of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in Madagascar.

Globally, few programs consider the needs of first-time young parents (FTYPs), who face disproportionate negative health consequences during pregnancy and childbirth. Scant evidence exists on FTYPs' broader health needs. Formative research in two regions of Madagascar used a socio-ecological lens to explore, via 44 interviews and 32 focus group discussions, the influences on FTYPs at the individual, couple, family, community, and system levels. We spoke with FTYPs who had, and who had not, used sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, their parents/kin and influential adults, and community health workers and facility health providers. Data analysis, guided by a codebook, used Atlas.ti. Age, social position, and implicit power dynamics operating within and across socio-ecological levels affected FTYPs' service-seeking behaviors. The nature and extent of influence varied by health service type. Cross-cutting social factors affecting service use/non-use included gender dynamics, pressures from mothers, in-laws, and family tradition, and adolescent stigmatization for too-early pregnancy. Structural and economic factors included limited awareness of and lack of trust in available services, unfriendliness of services, and FTYPs' limited financial resources. A socio-ecological program perspective can inform tailoring of activities to address broader SRH issues, including how relationships, gender, power, and intergenerational dynamics influence service use.

An exploration of village-level uterotonic practices in Fenerive-Est, Madagascar.

BACKGROUND: Pharmaceutical uterotonics are effective for preventing postpartum hemorrhage and complications related to unsafe abortion. In Madagascar, however, traditional birth attendants (Matrones) commonly administer medicinal teas for uterotonic purposes. Little is known about Matrone practices and how they might coincide with efforts to increase uterotonic coverage. The aims of this study were to: 1) identify indications for presumed uterotonic plant use by Matrones, 2) explore uterotonic practices at the village level, and 3) describe the response of health practitioners to village-level uterotonic practices. METHODS: Twelve in-depth interviews with health practitioners, Matrones and community agents were conducted in local dialect. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and translated into English for analysis using Atlas.ti. Medicinal plant specimens were also collected and analyzed for the presence of uterotonic peptides. RESULTS: While Matrones reported to offer specific teas for uterotonic purposes, health practitioners discussed providing emergency care for women with complications associated with use of specific teas. Complications included retained placenta, hypertonic uterus, hemorrhage and sepsis. Chemical analysis indicated the presence of cysteine-rich peptides in the Dantoroa/Denturus plant used in some Matrones' teas. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of uterotonic peptides in one plant used by Matrones may indicate that Matrones intend to administer uterotonics for safer childbirth. This finding, combined with practitioner reports of complications related to some medicinal teas, points to a need for availability of an evidence-based uterotonic at the village level, namely, misoprostol pills or oxytocin in the form of uniject.

Service Availability and Readiness Assessment of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Services at Public Health Facilities in Madagascar.

The Service Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA) survey was adapted and used to generate information on service availability and the readiness of maternal, newborn and child health facilities to provide basic health care interventions for obstetric care, neonatal and child health in Madagascar. The survey collected data from fifty-two public health facilities, ranging from university hospitals (CHU), referral district and regional hospitals (CHD/ CHRR) to basic health centres (CSB). For basic emergency obstetric and newborn care (BEmONC) readiness, on average, CHU had nine (71.8%), CHD/CHRR had eight and CSB had six out of the thirteen tracer items. Regarding the availability of the eleven tracer items for comprehensive CEmONC services, on average a CHU had nine ( 80.0%), a CHRR had eight (71.1%) and a CHD that is the only type of hospitals in rural area had three tracer items (30.0%). Tracer item availability results are low, indicating the need to strengthen supplies at basic health centers in order to improve the chances of success of Madagascar's Roadmap for accelerating the reduction of the maternal and neonatal mortality 2015-2019, and meeting Sustainable Development Goals 3.1 and 3.2.

Increasing Access to Prevention of Postpartum Hemorrhage Interventions for Births in Health Facilities and at Home in Four Districts of Rwanda.

To assess coverage, acceptability, and feasibility of a program to prevent postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) at community and facility levels, a study was conducted in 60 health facilities and their catchment areas in four districts in Rwanda. A total of 220 skilled birth attendants at these facilities were trained to provide active management of the third stage of labor and 1994 community health workers (ASMs) were trained to distribute misoprostol at home births. A total of 4,074 pregnant women were enrolled in the program (20.5% of estimated deliveries). Overall uterotonic coverage was 82.5%: 85% of women who delivered at a facility received a uterotonic to prevent PPH; 76% of women reached at home at the time of birth by an ASM ingested misoprostol--a 44.3% coverage rate. Administration of misoprostol at the time of birth for home births achieved moderate uterotonic coverage. Advancing the distribution of misoprostol through antenatal care services could further increase coverage.

Complicaçöes obstétricas: fatores maternos, psicológicos e sociais / Obstetrical complications: maternal, psychological and social factors

Um grupo de 116 grávidas atendidas no ambulatório de pré-natal da Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeiräo Preto, Säo Paulo, foi entrevistado no terceiro trimestre da gravidez e nos 1§, 15§ e 45§ dias após o parto. O objetivo foi investigar os sentimentos e expectativas da mulher em relaçäo à gravidez, sua idade mental, fatores bio-socioeconômicos e complicaçöes obstétricas. Foi utilizado o questionário de saúde geral de GOLDBERG (1972), instrumento especialmente delineado pelas autoras para avaliar sentimentos maternos e variáveis bio-psicoeconômicas, além de avaliaçäo de ansiedade. Os resultados mostraram que as complicaçöes obstétricas foram mais freqüentes entre mulheres solteiras, de nível socioeconômico baixo e ansiosas durante a gestaçäo. A admissäo de sentimentos negativos referentes à gravidez pareceu representar um fator de proteçäo com relaçäo à ocorrência de complicaçöes obstétricas

Suicidio: aspectos psicodinamicos / Suicide; psicodinamies aspects

Observando as historias de vida obtidas atraves dos familiares de pessoas que apresentaram como comportamento auto-destrutivo,o suicidioressaltou-se atraves da percepçao e reflexao pessoal, algumas consideraçoes psicodinamicas baseadas em conceitos teoricos psicanaliticos sobre relaçoes de objetos como aspectos da mente. Sugeriu-se para a compreensao psicodinamica dessescomportamentos que os suicidas possam pertencer a dois tipos de personalidade basicos: o esquizoide e o depressivo, de acordo com a conceituaçao desenvolvidapor Fairbairn

Separaçäo parental e suicídio / Parental separation and suicidi

Estudou-se 17 casos de suicídios através de entrevistas domiciliares, utilizando-se de um questionário aplicado aos familiares e/ou pessoas mais ligadas ao suicida, após o seu comportamento auto-destrutivo. Nesse trabalho, usando parte dos dados coletados através da metodologia descrita, procurou-se verificar nessas pessoas a condiçäo comumente denominada de "lar desfeito". Entre outros aspectos, os resultados podem sugerir uma associaçäo entre experiências de perdas parentais na infância e adolescência e suicídio

Comunicaçöes indiretas da intençäo suicida / Indirect comunications of suicide intention

Estudaram-se 17 casos de suicídios através de entrevistas domiciliares, utilizando-se de um questionário aplicado aos familiares e/ou pessoas mais ligadas ao suicida, após o seu comportamento autodestrutivo. Usando parte dos dados coletados através da metodologia descrita, verificou-se que alteraçöes de sentimentos e condutas e os antecedentes de comportamentos autodestrutivos constituem sinais indicadores de um perigo iminente relacionado ao suicídio

Comunicaçöes diretas da intençäo suicida / Direct communications of suicidal attempted

Estudaram-se dezessete casos de suicídios, através de entrevistas domiciliares, utilizando-se parte de um questionário que foi aplicado aos familiares ou pessoas mais ligadas ao suicida, após o seu comportamento autodestrutivo. Observou-se que a grande maioria das pessoas que cometeram suicídio comunicaram suas idéias, anteriormente ao ato autodestrutivo, diretamente às pessoas dos seus núcleos sócio-familiares