BACKGROUND Two decades after the launch of the Safe Motherhood campaign, India still accounts for at least a quarter of maternal death globally. Gujarat is one of the most economically developed states of India, but progress in the social sector has not been commensurate with economic growth. The purpose of this study was to use district-level data to gain a better understanding of equity in ac...

background : the problem of maternal deaths cannot be solved without having accurate information about the number and causes of these deaths. the aim of this study was to determine the exact cause of maternal deaths during childbirth in isfahan, iran in 2006_2011. this was made by determining the direct and indirect causes of maternal deaths, autopsy reports and prenatal care. methods : in a de...

BACKGROUND Geographic accessibility to health facilities represents a fundamental barrier to utilisation of maternal and newborn health (MNH) services, driving historically hidden spatial pockets of localized inequalities. Here, we examine utilisation of MNH care as an emergent property of accessibility, highlighting high-resolution spatial heterogeneity and sub-national inequalities in receivi...

S outh Africa is performing well on certain selected maternal health process indicators; antenatal care attendance has remained over 90% since 1998; deliveries conducted by skilled health workers have increased from 84% in 1998 to 92% in 2003. Despite this, maternal mortality is on the increase, with the latest Saving Mothers Report showing that maternal mortality in the 2002-2004 triennium inc...

This paper highlights some of the challenges facing maternal health in Nepal and to suggest possible solutions for improvements. Key literature from across the globe is reviewed and discussed in a Nepalese context. Maternal mortality remains one of the biggest public health problems in Nepal. Lack of access to basic maternal healthcare, difficult geographical terrain, poorly developed transport...

Objectives Many conflict-affected countries are faced with an acute shortage of health care providers, including skilled birth attendants. As such, during conflicts traditional birth attendants have become the first point of call for many pregnant women, assisting them during pregnancy, labour and birth, and in the postpartum period. This study seeks to explore how the role of traditional birth...

BACKGROUND Poor utilisation of facility-based antenatal and delivery care services in Kenya hampers reduction of maternal mortality. Studies suggest that the participation of men in antenatal and delivery care is associated with better health care seeking behaviour, yet many reproductive health programs do not facilitate their involvement. This qualitative study conducted in rural Western Kenya...

OBJECTIVE This study investigated ethnic differentials in the use of pregnancy-related care and aimed to identify whether the differences persist when geographical access to services is equal. This study was based in the north-eastern Ch'orti area of Guatemala, an area characterised by a mixed ladino (of Spanish descent) and Maya (Ch'orti) culture. METHODS Data from a household survey carried...

OBJECTIVE Several countries in sub-Saharan Africa have implemented policies to remove or reduce user fees. Our aim was to identify criteria guiding such decisions among national policy entrepreneurs, those who link up problem definition, solution development and political processes. METHODS We administered a best-worst scaling (BWS) experiment to 89 policy entrepreneurs, asking them to identi...

INTRODUCTION Access to maternal and child health care services among the nomadic pastoralists community in Kenya and African continent in general is unacceptably low. In Turkana, only 18.1% of the women had seen a nurse or a midwife for antenatal care during pregnancy while only 1.3% of pregnant women reported delivery at health facilities in 2005. Ng'adakarin BAMOCHA model, based on migratory ...