Over forty percent of women living with HIV report interruption in antiretroviral therapy during intrapartum and early postpartum inpatient stay: findings from five hospitals in Ghana.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence during and after pregnancy is essential to reduce perinatal transmission of HIV. However, little is known about adherence during the intrapartum and early postpartum inpatient hospital stay. Using secondary data from a hospital-based cohort study focused on the relationship between birthweight and engagement in HIV care, we examined the magnitude of, reasons for, and factors associated with incomplete intrapartum and early postpartum ART adherence among adult women (18 years or older) living with HIV who delivered within the previous two weeks at one of five hospitals in Accra, Ghana. Of the 142 enrolled participants who had complete adherence data and reported being on ART at the time of hospital admission, 43% (61/142) reported missing at least one ART dose during labor, delivery, and postpartum, including almost 20% (28/142) missing 2 or more consecutive doses. Women who reported frequently missing ART doses during pregnancy had higher odds of reporting missed doses during their intrapartum and postpartum hospital stays. Among those with inpatient ART interruption, the most frequently cited reasons were: forgetting medication at home (42%) and challenges of being in or recovering from labor (29%). Maternal perception of infant health at birth, hospital level of care, and frequency of missing HIV medications during pregnancy were associated with incomplete ART adherence during the intrapartum and early postpartum inpatient stay. An enabling clinical environment to facilitate access to ART during inpatient stays may have positive implications for ART adherence.

Respectful maternity care in Israel during the Covid-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study of associations between childbirth care practices and women's perceptions of care.

BACKGROUND: Respectful maternity care is a crucial part of quality care and is associated with better health outcomes. Early in the Covid-19 pandemic, reports from across the world indicated that infection containment measures were often implemented in ways that resulted in disrespectful care of women during facility-based childbirths in violation of evidence-based practices. This study aimed to explore the associations between childbirth care practices and perceptions of care as satisfactory and respectful among women who delivered in Israeli hospitals during the first six months of the Covid-19 pandemic. METHODS: A cross-sectional self-administered online survey was conducted to explore women's perceptions of maternity care using an adapted version of the WHO Community Survey Tool for measuring how women are treated during facility-based childbirth. Multivariate logistic regression models evaluated the associations between sociodemographic characteristics, obstetric information, and measurements of childbirth experiences and women's perceptions of receiving respectful and satisfactory care. RESULTS: The responses of 981 women were included in the analysis. While the majority of women perceived the care they received as both respectful (86.54%) and satisfactory (80.22%), almost 3 in 4 women (72.68%) reported experiencing at least one type of disrespectful care. Positive communication with the medical staff and respect for autonomy were associated with a more positive birth experience for women. Women were more likely to perceive their care as respectful if they did not feel ignored (AOR = 40.11;22.87-70.34). Perception of satisfactory care was more likely among women who had the opportunity to discuss preferences with the medical staff (AOR = 10.15; 6.93-14.86). Having Covid-19 procedures explained increased the likelihood of reporting respectful and satisfactory care (AOR = 2.89;1.91-4.36; AOR = 2.83;2.01-4). CONCLUSION: Understanding which care practices are associated with women's perceptions of care at facility-based births is critical to ensuring quality care. The findings of this study can inform future work and research aimed at enhancing respectful maternity care during times of crisis and beyond.

Associations between self-reported obstetric complications and experience of care: a secondary analysis of survey data from Ghana, Kenya, and India.

BACKGROUND: Although several indicators have been proposed to measure women's experience of care in health facilities during the intrapartum period, it is unknown if these indicators perform differently in the context of obstetric emergencies. We examined the relationship between experience of care indicators from the Person-Centered Maternity Care (PCMC) scale and obstetric complications. METHODS: We used data from four cross-sectional surveys conducted in Kenya (rural: N = 873; urban: N = 531), Ghana (N = 531), and India (N = 2018) between August 2016 and October 2017. The pooled sample included 3953 women aged 15-49 years who gave birth within 9 weeks prior to the survey. Experience of care was measured using the PCMC scale. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariable analyses were conducted to examine the associations between the composite and 31 individual PCMC indicators with (1) obstetric complications; (2) severity of complications; and (3) delivery by cesarean section (c-section). RESULTS: 16% (632) of women in the pooled sample reported obstetric complications; and 4% (132) reported having given birth via c-Sect. (10.5% among those with complications). The average standardized PCMC scores (range 0-100) were 63.5 (SD = 14.1) for the full scale, 43.2 (SD = 20.6) for communication and autonomy, 67.8 (SD = 14.1) for supportive care, and 80.1 (SD = 18.2) for dignity and respect sub-scales. Women with complications had higher communication and autonomy scores (45.6 [SD = 20.2]) on average compared to those without complications (42.7 [SD = 20.6]) (p < 0.001), but lower supportive care scores, and about the same scores for dignity and respect and for the overall PCMC. 18 out of 31 experience of care indicators showed statistically significant differences by complications, but the magnitudes of the differences were generally small, and the direction of the associations were inconsistent. In general, women who delivered by c-section reported better experiences. CONCLUSIONS: There is insufficient evidence based on our analysis to suggest that women with obstetric complications report consistently better or worse experiences of care than women without. Women with complications appear to experience better care on some indicators and worse care on others. More studies are needed to understand the relationship between obstetric complications and women's experience of care and to explore why women who deliver by c-section may report better experience of care.

In several studies and reports, women have described mistreatment by health providers during childbirth in health facilities. Particularly in low- and middle-income countries, such mistreatment has negative effects on women's decisions to seek maternity care in health facilities. It is unclear if women with complications are more or less likely to experience some forms of mistreatment compared to women without complications. In this study, we examined 31 experience of care indicators in three domains: (1) Supportive Care; (2) Respect and Dignity; and (3) Communication and Autonomy from the validated Person-Centered Maternity Care (PCMC) questionnaire. We compare these experience of care indicators between women who report obstetric complications and those who don't report complications, by the reported severity of the complications, and by their mode of delivery. The study included data from three countries: Ghana, Kenya, and India. The results showed that the experience of care among women who reported obstetric complications was not consistently better or worse than that of those who did not have complications. Therefore, efforts should be made to improve the experience of care in health facilities for every birthing woman. Additionally, women who delivered via c-section had consistently better experiences than women who delivered vaginally. More studies are needed to understand the relationship between mode of delivery and women's experience of care.

Is care of stillborn babies and their parents respectful? Results from an international online survey.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify parents' experiences of respectful care around stillbirth globally. DESIGN: Multi-country, online, cross-sectional survey. SETTING AND POPULATION: Self-identified bereaved parents (n = 3769) of stillborn babies from 44 high- and middle-income countries. METHODS: Parents' perspectives of seven aspects of care quality, factors associated with respectful care and seven bereavement care practices were compared across geographical regions using descriptive statistics. Respectful care was compared between country-income groups using multivariable logistic regression. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Self-reported experience of care around the time of stillbirth. RESULTS: A quarter (25.4%) of 3769 respondents reported disrespectful care after stillbirth and 23.5% reported disrespectful care of their baby. Gestation less than 30 weeks and primiparity were associated with disrespect. Reported respectful care was lower in middle-income countries than in high-income countries (adjusted odds ratio 0.35, 95% CI 0.29-0.42, p < 0.01). In many countries, aspects of care quality need improvement, such as ensuring families have enough time with providers. Participating respondents from Latin America and southern Europe reported lower satisfaction across all aspects of care quality compared with northern Europe. Unmet need for memory-making activities in middle-income countries was high. CONCLUSIONS: Many parents experience disrespectful care around stillbirth. Provider training and system-level support to address practical barriers are urgently needed. However, some practices (which are important to parents) can be readily implemented such as memory-making activities and referring to the baby by name. TWEETABLE ABSTRACT: One in four experience disrespectful care after stillbirth. Parents want more time with providers and their babies, to talk and memory-make.

'The baby will have the right beginning': a qualitative study on mother and health worker views on point-of-care HIV birth testing across 10 sites in Zimbabwe.

BACKGROUND: The survival of HIV-infected infants depends on early identification and initiation on effective treatment. HIV-exposed infants are tested at 6 weeks of age; however, testing for HIV sooner (e.g., shortly after birth) can identify in utero infection, which is associated with rapid progression. Infant early diagnostic virologic tests often have long turnaround times, reducing the utility of early testing. Point-of-care (POC) testing allows neonates born in health facilities to get results prior to discharge. This study aimed to understand the views of mothers and health workers regarding the use and acceptability of POC birth testing. METHODS: Beginning in 2018, Zimbabwe offered standard HIV testing at birth to high-risk HIV-exposed infants; as part of a pilot program, at 10 selected hospitals, POC birth testing (BT) was offered to every HIV-exposed infant. In order to understand experiences at the selected sites, 48 interviews were held: 23 with mothers and 25 with health workers, including 6 nurses-in-charge. Participants were purposively sampled across the participating sites. Interviews were held in English, Shona, or Ndebele, and transcribed in English. Line-by-line coding was carried out, and the constant comparison method of analysis was used to identify key themes for each respondent type. RESULTS: Findings were organized under four themes: challenges with BT, acceptability of BT, benefits of BT, and recommendations for BT programs. Overall, BT was well accepted by mothers and health workers because it encouraged mothers to better care for their uninfected newborns or initiate treatment more rapidly for infected infants. While the benefits were well understood, mothers felt there were some challenges, namely that they should be informed in advance about testing procedures and tested in a more private setting. Mothers and HCWs also recommended improving awareness of BT, both among health care workers and in the community in general, as well as ensuring that facilities are well-stocked with supplies and can deliver results in a timely way before scaling up programs. CONCLUSIONS: Mothers and health workers strongly support implementation and expansion of birth testing programs due to the benefits for newborns. The challenges noted should be taken as planning guidance, rather than reasons to delay or discontinue birth testing programs.

Global core indicators for measuring WHO's paediatric quality-of-care standards in health facilities: development and expert consensus.

BACKGROUND: There are currently no global recommendations on a parsimonious and robust set of indicators that can be measured routinely or periodically to monitor quality of hospital care for children and young adolescents. We describe a systematic methodology used to prioritize and define a core set of such indicators and their metadata for progress tracking, accountability, learning and improvement, at facility, (sub) national, national, and global levels. METHODS: We used a deductive methodology which involved the use of the World Health Organization Standards for improving the quality-of-care for children and young adolescents in health facilities as the organizing framework for indicator development. The entire process involved 9 complementary steps which included: a rapid literature review of available evidence, the application of a peer-reviewed systematic algorithm for indicator systematization and prioritization, and multiple iterative expert consultations to establish consensus on the proposed indicators and their metadata. RESULTS: We derived a robust set of 25 core indicators and their metadata, representing all 8 World Health Organization quality standards, 40 quality statements and 520 quality measures. Most of these indicators are process-related (64%) and 20% are outcome/impact indicators. A large proportion (84%) of indicators were proposed for measurement at both outpatient and inpatient levels. By virtue of being a parsimonious set and given the stringent criteria for prioritizing indicators with "quality measurement" attributes, the recommended set is not evenly distributed across the 8 quality standards. CONCLUSIONS: To support ongoing global and national initiatives around paediatric quality-of-care programming at country level, the recommended indicators can be adopted using a tiered approach that considers indicator measurability in the short-, medium-, and long-terms, within the context of the country's health information system readiness and maturity. However, there is a need for further research to assess the feasibility of implementing these indicators across contexts, and the need for their validation for global common reporting.

Traditions and trust: a qualitative study of barriers to facility-based obstetric and immediate neonatal care in Chiapas, Mexico.

Poor access and quality of intrapartum and postpartum health care contribute to high global maternal and neonatal mortality rates and intracountry inequity. We examined barriers to careseeking and health care utilization for obstetric and immediate neonatal care in Chiapas, a state with one of the largest indigenous populations and poorest health indicators in Mexico. We conducted 74 in-depth interviews with recently delivered women, their male partners, and traditional birth attendants, and 27 interviews with health facility and hospital staff in rural Chiapas. Interviews were conducted and recorded in Tzeltal and Ch'ol; data were transcribed, coded and analyzed in Spanish using thematic analysis techniques. Barriers to utilization of facility delivery that were reported in order of frequency were: (1) economic and geographic barriers; (2) traditions incompatible with facility policies; (3) fear or previous experience of mistreatment or abuse; (4) perceived poor quality care at facilities; (5) language and political barriers. Commonly reported barriers included distance, cost, lack of vehicles, and poor perceived quality of care, as well as linguistic barriers, lack of space, and fears of surgery or mistreatment. Some women reported obstetric violence and rights violations, including two cases of possible forced sterilizations, an unauthorized transfer of a newborn to another facility without consent or accompaniment of a guardian, and one failure to discharge a newborn because the family could not pay. Political conflict in the region contributed to additional barriers such as reduced trust in government facilities, and physical roadblocks during political activities. Improving geographic and economic access to obstetric and neonatal care can contribute to improved service utilization, but uptake of services can only be improved if quality of care, including communication and consent, are addressed. Historical and current relationships between various stakeholder and political groups should be considered when planning programs, which should be created as collaboratively as possible.

"Why would I go if the infant was healthy?": Factors Influencing Postnatal Care Utilization in Chiapas, Mexico.

Despite global efforts, postnatal care utilization remains low. There is almost no research on factors influencing postnatal care utilization in Latin America. Chiapas has one of the highest rates of maternal and neonatal mortality in Mexico. In 2014, we conducted 101 interviews with recently delivered women, male partners, traditional birth attendants (TBAs), and health staff, to assess factors influencing postnatal care utilization. Data underwent content analysis and thematic coding. Travel costs, postnatal seclusion practices, and a low perceived need for postnatal care were found to be disincentives to seek care. Providers ascribed low care adherence to cultural beliefs and low health literacy, while families indicated that their decision to seek facility care was mediated by the TBA's recognition of danger signs and perceived ability to manage complications. TBAs should be leveraged as gatekeepers, health literacy programs should emphasize the importance of primary care, and structural barriers to care should be reduced.

Factors that influence women's engagement with breastfeeding support: A qualitative evidence synthesis.

Breastfeeding is an integral part of early childhood interventions as it can prevent serious childhood and maternal illnesses. For breastfeeding support programmes to be effective, a better understanding of contextual factors that influence women's engagement and satisfaction with these programmes is needed. The aim of this synthesis is to suggest strategies to increase the level of satisfaction with support programmes and to better match the expectations and needs of women. We systematically searched for studies that used qualitative methods for data collection and analysis and that focused on women's experiences and perceptions regarding breastfeeding support programmes. We applied a maximum variation purposive sampling strategy and used thematic analysis. We assessed the methodological quality of the studies using a modified version of the CASP tool and assessed our confidence in the findings using the GRADE-CERQual approach. We included 51 studies of which we sampled 22 for in-depth analysis. Our sampled studies described the experiences of women with formal breastfeeding support by health care professionals in a hospital setting and informal support as for instance from community support groups. Our findings illustrate that the current models of breastfeeding support are dependent on a variety of contextual factors encouraging and supporting women to initiate and continue breastfeeding. They further highlight the relevance of providing different forms of support based on socio-cultural norms and personal backgrounds of women, especially if the support is one-on-one. Feeding decisions of women are situated within a woman's personal situation and may require diverse forms of support.

Communities, universal health coverage and primary health care.

Universal health coverage (UHC) depends on a strong primary health-care system. To be successful, primary health care must be expanded at community and household levels as much of the world's population still lacks access to health facilities for basic services. Abundant evidence shows that community-based interventions are effective for improving health-care utilization and outcomes when integrated with facility-based services. Community involvement is the cornerstone of local, equitable and integrated primary health care. Policies and actions to improve primary health care must regard community members as more than passive recipients of health care. Instead, they should be leaders with a substantive role in planning, decision-making, implementation and evaluation. Advancing the science of primary health care requires improved conceptual and analytical frameworks and research questions. Metrics used for evaluating primary health care and UHC largely focus on clinical health outcomes and the inputs and activities for achieving them. Little attention is paid to indicators of equitable coverage or measures of overall well-being, ownership, control or priority-setting, or to the extent to which communities have agency. In the future, communities must become more involved in evaluating the success of efforts to expand primary health care. Much of primary health care has taken place, and will continue to take place, outside health facilities. Involving community members in decisions about health priorities and in community-based service delivery is key to improving systems that promote access to care. Neither UHC nor the Health for All movement will be achieved without the substantial contribution of communities.

La couverture maladie universelle (CMU) repose sur un solide système de soins de santé primaires. Pour rendre les soins de santé primaires efficaces, il faut les étendre aux communautés et aux ménages car la majorité de la population mondiale n'a toujours pas accès aux structures médicales offrant des services de base. Nombreux sont les éléments qui prouvent que les interventions communautaires contribuent à améliorer l'utilisation des soins de santé et les résultats cliniques lorsqu'elles font partie intégrante des services proposés au sein des établissements. L'implication des communautés constitue la clé de voûte d'un système de soins de santé primaires local, équitable et intégré. Les politiques et actions visant à le renforcer doivent tenir compte des membres des communautés, et ne pas se limiter à les considérer comme des bénéficiaires passifs de soins de santé. Au contraire, leurs dirigeants devraient jouer un rôle prépondérant dans la planification, la prise de décisions, la mise en œuvre et l'évaluation. Faire progresser la science des soins de santé primaires requiert une optimisation des cadres analytiques et conceptuels, ainsi que des questions de recherche. Les paramètres employés pour évaluer les soins de santé primaires et la CMU se concentrent souvent sur les résultats cliniques, sur les activités et moyens utilisés pour les atteindre. Peu d'attention est accordée aux indicateurs d'une couverture équitable, ou aux mesures de bien-être général, de possession, de contrôle ou de définition des priorités, ou encore à l'étendue du pouvoir d'action des communautés. À l'avenir, les communautés doivent s'engager davantage dans l'évaluation de la réussite des efforts déployés pour développer les soins de santé primaires. La plupart de ces soins ont toujours été et continueront à être prodigués en dehors des structures médicales. Impliquer les membres des communautés dans les décisions destinées à définir les priorités sanitaires et la fourniture de services communautaires est essentiel pour améliorer des systèmes qui permettront de promouvoir l'accès aux soins. Ni la CMU, ni le mouvement «Santé pour tous¼ ne parviendront à leurs fins sans la contribution majeure des communautés.

La cobertura sanitaria universal (CSU) depende de un sistema de atención primaria de salud sólido. Sin embargo, la atención primaria de salud se debe ampliar a nivel de la comunidad y de los hogares para que logre resultados efectivos, ya que gran parte de la población mundial sigue sin tener acceso a los centros de salud para recibir los servicios básicos. Existen muchas pruebas que demuestran que las intervenciones basadas en la comunidad son efectivas para mejorar el uso y los resultados de la atención de la salud cuando se integran con los servicios que se prestan en los centros de salud. La participación de la comunidad es el elemento fundamental de la atención primaria de salud local, equitativa e integrada. Las políticas y las medidas para mejorar la atención primaria de salud deben tener en cuenta que los miembros de la comunidad son más que receptores pasivos de la atención de salud. Por el contrario, deben ser líderes con una función importante en la planificación, la toma de decisiones, la implementación y la evaluación. El progreso de la ciencia en la atención primaria de salud requiere mejorar los marcos conceptuales y analíticos y los temas de investigación. Los parámetros que se usan para evaluar la atención primaria de salud y la CSU se centran en gran medida en los resultados clínicos de la salud y en los recursos y las actividades que permiten alcanzarlos. Se presta poca atención a los indicadores de cobertura equitativa o a las medidas de bienestar general, propiedad, control o establecimiento de prioridades, o a la medida en que las comunidades participan activamente. Por consiguiente, las comunidades deben participar más en la evaluación del éxito de los esfuerzos por ampliar la atención primaria de salud en el futuro. Gran parte de la atención primaria de salud siempre ha tenido y seguirá teniendo lugar fuera de los centros de salud. La participación de los miembros de la comunidad en las decisiones sobre las prioridades sanitarias y en la prestación de servicios comunitarios es fundamental para mejorar los sistemas que promueven el acceso a la atención, ya que ni la CSU ni el movimiento Salud para Todos se lograrán si las comunidades no contribuyen de manera sustancial.

Confronting the culture of care: a call to end disrespect, discrimination, and detainment of women and newborns in health facilities everywhere.

Quality and respect are increasingly recognized as critical aspects of the provision of health care, and poor quality may be an essential driver of low health care utilization, especially for maternal and neonatal care. Beyond differential access to care, unequal levels of quality exacerbate inequity, and those who need services most, including displaced, migrant, and conflict-affected populations, may be receiving poorer quality care, or may be deterred from seeking care at all.Examples from around the world show that mothers and their children are often judged and mistreated for presenting to facilities without clean or "modern" clothing, without soap or clean sheets to use in the hospital, or without gifts like sweets or candies for providers. Underfunded facilities may rely on income from those seeking care, but denying and shaming the poor further discriminates against vulnerable women and newborns, by placing additional financial burden on those already marginalized.The culture of care needs to shift to create welcoming environments for all care-seekers, regardless of socio-economic status. No one should fear mistreatment, denial of services, or detainment due to lack of gifts or payments. There is an urgent need to ensure that health care centers are safe, friendly, respectful, and hospitable spaces for women, their newborns, and their families.

Barriers to maternal retention in HIV care in Ghana: key differences during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

BACKGROUND: Maternal retention in HIV care is lower for women in the postpartum period than during pregnancy, but the reasons are poorly understood. We examined key differences in barriers to retention in HIV care during and after pregnancy. METHODS: We conducted semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 30 postpartum women living with HIV. Participants were recruited from two tertiary facilities implementing Option B+ for prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission in Accra, Ghana. We collected data from mothers who had disengaged from HIV care and those who were still engaged in care. The interviews were analyzed using principles adapted from grounded theory. RESULTS: Participants' experiences and narratives showed that retention in HIV care was more challenging during the postpartum period than during pregnancy. Poor maternal physical health (from birth complications and cesarean section), socio-cultural factors (norms about newborn health and pregnancy), and economic difficulties linked to childbirth (such as unemployment, under-employment, and debt) made the costs of retention in HIV care more economically and socially expensive in the postpartum period than during pregnancy. Some participants also shared that transportation costs and resulting dependence on a partner to pay increased during the postpartum period because of a strong shift in maternal preference for private modes of transportation due to HIV stigma and the desire to protect the newborn. These factors played a larger role in the postpartum period than during pregnancy and created a significant barrier to retention. A conceptual model of how these factors interrelate, the synergy between them, and how they affect retention in the postpartum period is presented. CONCLUSIONS: In Ghana, lower retention in HIV care in the postpartum period compared to in pregnancy may be primarily driven by social, economic, and newborn health factors. Multifaceted economic-based and stigma-reduction interventions are needed to increase retention in maternal HIV care after childbirth.

"The right time is just after birth": acceptability of point-of-care birth testing in Eswatini: qualitative results from infant caregivers, health care workers, and policymakers.

BACKGROUND: Testing for HIV at birth has the potential to identify infants infected in utero, and allows for the possibility of beginning treatment immediately after birth; point of care (POC) testing allows rapid return of results and faster initiation on treatment for positive infants. Eswatini piloted birth testing in three public maternities for over 2 years. METHODS: In order to assess the acceptability of POC birth testing in the pilot sites in Eswatini, interviews were held with caregivers of HIV-exposed infants who were offered birth testing (N = 28), health care workers (N = 14), and policymakers (N = 10). Participants were purposively sampled. Interviews were held in English or SiSwati, and transcribed in English. Transcripts were coded by line, and content analysis and constant comparison were used to identify key themes for each respondent type. RESULTS: Responses were categorized into: knowledge, experience, opinions, barriers and challenges, facilitators, and suggestions to improve POC birth testing. Preliminary findings reveal that point of care birth testing has been very well received but challenges were raised. Most caregivers appreciated testing the newborns at birth and getting results quickly, since it reduced anxiety of waiting for several weeks. However, having a favorable experience with testing was linked to having supportive and informed family members and receiving a negative result. Caregivers did not fully understand the need for blood draws as opposed to tests with saliva, and expressed the fears of seeing their newborns in pain. They were specifically grateful for supportive nursing staff who respected their confidentiality. Health care workers expressed strong support for the program but commented on the high demand for testing, increased workload, difficulty with errors in the testing machine itself, and struggles to implement the program without sufficient staffing, especially on evenings and weekends when phlebotomists were not available. Policymakers noted that there have been challenges within the program of losing mothers to follow up after they leave hospital, and recommended stronger linkages to community groups. CONCLUSIONS: There is strong support for scale-up of POC birth testing, but countries should consider ways to optimize staffing and manage demand.

Global research priorities for social, behavioural and community engagement interventions for maternal, newborn and child health.

BACKGROUND: Social, behavioural and community engagement (SBCE) interventions are essential for global maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) strategies. Past efforts to synthesise research on SBCE interventions identified a need for clear priorities to guide future research. WHO led an exercise to identify global research priorities for SBCE interventions to improve MNCH. METHODS: We adapted the Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative method and combined quantitative and qualitative methods to determine MNCH SBCE intervention research priorities applicable across different contexts. Using online surveys and meetings, researchers and programme experts proposed up to three research priorities and scored the compiled priorities against four criteria - health and social impact, equity, feasibility, and overall importance. Priorities were then ranked by score. A group of 29 experts finalised the top 10 research priorities for each of maternal, newborn or child health and a cross-cutting area. RESULTS: A total of 310 experts proposed 867 research priorities, which were consolidated into 444 priorities and scored by 280 experts. Top maternal and newborn health priorities focused on research to improve the delivery of SBCE interventions that strengthen self-care/family care practices and care-seeking behaviour. Child health priorities focused on the delivery of SBCE interventions, emphasising determinants of service utilisation and breastfeeding and nutrition practices. Cross-cutting MNCH priorities highlighted the need for better integration of SBCE into facility-based and community-based health services. CONCLUSIONS: Achieving global targets for MNCH requires increased investment in SBCE interventions that build capacities of individuals, families and communities as agents of their own health. Findings from this exercise provide guidance to prioritise investments and ensure that they are best directed to achieve global objectives. Stakeholders are encouraged to use these priorities to guide future research investments and to adapt them for country programmes by engaging with national level stakeholders.

Postnatal Care Experiences and Barriers to Care Utilization for Home- and Facility-Delivered Newborns in Uganda and Zambia.

Objectives The objective of this study was to examine experiences with, and barriers to, accessing postnatal care services, in the context of a maternal health initiative. Methods As part of a larger evaluation of an initiative to promote facility deliveries in 8 rural districts in Uganda and Zambia, 48 focus groups were held with recently-delivered women with previous home and facility deliveries (6 per district). Data on postnatal care experiences were translated, coded and analyzed using thematic content analysis techniques. Results were categorized into: positive postnatal care experiences, barriers to postnatal care utilization, and negative postnatal care experiences. Results Women who accessed care largely reported positive experiences, with Zambian women generally reporting more positive interactions than Ugandan women. The main reasons given for low postnatal care utilization were low awareness about the need, fear of mistreatment by clinic staff, cost and distance. In half of the focus groups, women described personal experience or knowledge of denial or threatened denial of postnatal care due to the birth location. Although outright denial of care was not common, women frequently described various types of actual or presumed discrimination because of having a home birth. Conclusions for Practice While many women reported positive experiences with postnatal care utilization, cases of delay or denial of postnatal care exist. As programs incentivize facility deliveries, the lack of focus on postnatal support may place home-delivered newborns in "double jeopardy" due to poor quality intra-partum care and reduced access to postnatal care.

Defining disrespect and abuse of newborns: a review of the evidence and an expanded typology of respectful maternity care.

Amid increased attention to quality of obstetric care and respectful maternity care globally, insufficient focus has been given to quality of care and respectful care for newborns in the postnatal period. Especially in low and middle income countries, where low utilisation of obstetric and neonatal services is of concern, it is plausible that poor quality of care or mistreatment of newborns or stillborn infants will influence future care seeking, both for the health care needs of the growing infant and for subsequent pregnancies. Preliminary evidence indicates that mistreatment of newborns exists, both in the immediate and later postnatal periods. Definitions have been developed for instances of mistreatment of women during labour and delivery, but how newborns fit into the categorisations and critical questions around how to conceptualise dignified care for newborns have not been well addressed.The WHO recently published "Standards for improving quality of maternal and newborn care in health facilities", which provides a series of clinical and experiential standards that health facilities should strive to provide for all patients. Presented here are a number of the experiential measures, as well as health system requirements, which could be further developed to encompass the explicit needs of newborns and stillborn infants, and their families. Specific WHO Standards that require more attention for newborns are those related to effective communication, informed consent and emotional support (including for bereaved families).Using seven categories previously developed for respectful maternity care generally, a literature review was conducted on mistreatment of newborns. The review revealed examples of mistreatment of newborns in six of the seven categories. Common occurrences were failure to meet a professional standard of care, stigma and discrimination, and health system constraints. Many instances of mistreatment of newborns related to neglect and non-consented care rather than outright physical or verbal abuse. Two additional categories were also identified for newborns related to legal accountability and bereavement care.More research is needed into the prevalence of disrespect, abuse, and stigmatisation of newborns and further discussions are needed about how to provide quality care for all patients, including the smallest and most vulnerable.

Community Involvement in Health Systems Strengthening to Improve Global Health Outcomes: A Review of Guidelines and Potential Roles.

Definitions of health systems strengthening (HSS) have been limited in their inclusion of communities, despite evidence that community involvement improves program effectiveness for many health interventions. We review 15 frameworks for HSS, highlighting how communities are represented and find few delineated roles for community members or organizations. This review raises the need for a cohesive definition of community involvement in HSS and well-described activities that communities can play in the process. We discuss how communities can engage with HSS in four different areas-planning and priority-setting; program implementation; monitoring, evaluation, and quality improvement; and advocacy-and how these activities could be better incorporated into key HSS frameworks. We argue for more carefully designed interactions between health systems policies and structures, planned health systems improvements, and local communities. These interactions should consider local community inputs, strengths, cultural and social assets, as well as limitations in and opportunities for increasing capacity for better health outcomes.

Postnatal care utilization and local understandings of contagion among HIV-infected and uninfected women in rural, southern Zambia.

Postnatal care is essential for ensuring the optimal health of newborns and necessary for the prevention of maternal-to-child human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission as well as the early diagnosis and treatment of HIV-infected infants. However, coverage of postnatal care is low in many rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa. We examined women's experiences of accessing formal postnatal care for their HIV-exposed newborns, comparing reports of HIV-infected and uninfected women in an HIV-endemic area of rural southern Zambia. We conducted 24 qualitative in-depth interviews with recently delivered women in a rural region of southern Zambia, including 8 with women who were willing to disclose their HIV infection status and answer additional questions. Data were transcribed, coded and analyzed using thematic analysis techniques. HIV-infected women identified more disincentives and reported more negative experiences accessing postnatal care than HIV-uninfected women. A local notion of contagion holds that healthy infants may become sick with chibele, a fatal, febrile illness, if exposed to another infant who is taking "strong medicine", such as antiretroviral drugs. Thus, HIV-uninfected women expressed objections to sharing clinics with women and infants who were presumed to be under treatment. Additionally, women reported receiving better treatment from staff at HIV clinics compared to general pediatric clinics. Due to these tensions, HIV-infected women were less likely to visit a clinic for newborn care if the clinic or waiting area was a common space used by HIV-uninfected women and their children. When integrating programs for HIV with maternal and child health care, these nuanced tensions between groups of patients must be recognized and resolved.