Latest Articles
- Increasing Contraceptive Access for Hard-to-Reach Populations With Vouchers and Social Franchising in Uganda
Between 2011 and 2014, the program provided more than 330,000 family planning services, mostly to rural women in the informal sector with little or no education. 70% of the voucher clients chose an implant and 25% an intrauterine device.
- From Albania to Zimbabwe: Surveying 10 Years of Summer Field Experiences at the Rollins School of Public Health
Since 1985, students from the Rollins School of Public Health have worked for more than 300 organizations in 84 countries. The students indicated key benefits of applying public health course work in real-world settings and gaining skills, including cultural competency, leadership, teamwork, communication, and program implementation. They also experienced challenges related to health, safety, and support.
- Family Planning in the Context of Latin America's Universal Health Coverage Agenda
Latin American countries have expanded family planning along with universal health coverage (UHC). Leveraging UHC-oriented schemes to increase family planning program coverage, equity, and financing requires:
Prioritizing poor and indigenous populations
Including family planning services in all benefits packages
Ensuring sufficient supply of commodities and human resources to avoid stock-outs and implicit rationing
Reducing nonfinancial barriers to access
- Geographic Access Modeling of Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care in Kigoma Region, Tanzania: Transportation Schemes and Programmatic Implications
32% of estimated live births in the region may not be able to reach emergency obstetric and neonatal care (EmONC) services within 2 hours in dry season, regardless of the type of transportation available. However, bicycles, motorcycles, and cars provide a significant increase in geographic accessibility in some areas. Achieving good access may require upgrading non-EmONC facilities to EmONC facilities in some districts while incorporating bicycles and motorcycles into the health transportation strategy in others.
- Upgrading Supply Chain Management Systems to Improve Availability of Medicines in Tanzania: Evaluation of Performance and Cost Effects
Investments in a national logistics management unit and electronic logistics management information system resulted in better data use and improvements in some, but not all, management practices. After 1 year, key improvements included reduced stock-out rates, stock-out duration, and expiry rates. Although the upgraded systems were not inexpensive, they contributed to greater system efficiency and generated modest savings that defrayed much of the investment and maintenance costs.
- Large-Scale Evaluation of Quality of Care in 6 Countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia Using Clinical Performance and Value Vignettes
When providers in 6 different countries were asked how they would care for the same patient, there was wide variation within and between countries. Nevertheless, 11% of the physicians scored over 80%, suggesting good quality of care is possible even with resource constraints. Use of validated clinical vignettes, which can be applied affordably at scale, could help improve quality of services in low- and middle-income countries.
- The Tobacco-Free Village Program: Helping Rural Areas Implement and Achieve Goals of Tobacco Control Policies in India
Tobacco control and prevention in rural areas are possible as demonstrated by a community-driven tobacco-free village program in India. Success factors included community ownership with supportive program guidance, motivated and committed local leaders, collaboration with grassroots organizations, rewards and sanctions to establish new social norms, and provision of other income-generating options for vendors who sell tobacco. While the program required time and dedicated effort and was not successful in all villages, it holds promise for helping to achieve the goals of tobacco control policies, especially in resource-scarce settings.
- The Importance of Mental Well-Being for Health Professionals During Complex Emergencies: It Is Time We Take It Seriously
We call on humanitarian aid organizations to integrate proven mental health strategies to protect the mental health of their workforce and improve staff capacity to provide care for vulnerable populations. Such strategies could include:
Pre-deployment training
Art therapy
Team building
Physical exercise
Mindfulness or contemplative techniques
Mind-body exercises
Narrative Exposure Therapy
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing
- The BetterBirth Program: Pursuing Effective Adoption and Sustained Use of the WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist Through Coaching-Based Implementation in Uttar Pradesh, India
The BetterBirth Program relied on carefully structured coaching that was multilevel, collaborative, and provider-centered to motivate birth attendants to use the WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist and improve adherence to essential birth practices. It was scaled to 60 sites as part of a randomized controlled trial in Uttar Pradesh, India.
- Integrated Person-Centered Health Care for All Women During Pregnancy: Implementing World Health Organization Recommendations on Antenatal Care for a Positive Pregnancy Experience
The 2016 WHO guideline on routine antenatal care (ANC) recommends several health systems interventions to improve quality of care and increase use of services including:
Midwife-led continuity of care throughout the antenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal periods
Task shifting components of ANC, including promotion of health-related behaviors and distribution of nutrition supplements
Recruitment and retention of health workers in rural and remote areas
Community mobilization to improve communication and support to pregnant women
Women-held case notes
A model with a minimum of 8 antenatal care contacts