Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Salt Between The Beans: A Qualitative Study Of The Role Of Auxiliary Midwives In A Hard-To-Reach Area Of Myanmar, Kyu Kyu Than, Stanley Luchters, Khaing Nwe Tin, Thazin La, James Beeson, Alison Morgan

Population Health, East Africa

Background: Auxiliary Midwives (AMWs) are unpaid volunteer health workers assisting qualified paid midwives in maternal and child health care mainly in hard-to-reach areas of Myanmar. This paper describes the relationship between AMWs and the health system in providing maternal and child services as perceived by the community, AMWs themselves and health care providers in one remote township of Myanmar.

Method: A qualitative study was conducted in Ngape Township, Myanmar. A total of 15 focus group discussions with midwives, AMWs, community members and mothers were conducted. Ten key informant interviews were performed with national, district and township level health planners and …

Safeguarding Maternal And Child Health In South Africa By Starting The Child Support Grant Before Birth: Design Lessons From Pregnancy Support Programmes In 27 Countries, M. F. Chersich, Stanley Luchters, D. Blaauw, F. Scorgie, E. Kern, A. Van Den Heever, H. Rees, E. Peach, S. Kharadi, S. Fonn

Population Health, East Africa

Background: Deprivation during pregnancy and the neonatal period increases maternal morbidity, reduces birth weight and impairs child development, with lifelong consequences. Many poor countries provide grants to mitigate the impact of poverty during pregnancy. South Africa (SA) offers a post-delivery Child Support Grant (CSG), which could encompass support during pregnancy, informed by lessons learnt from similar grants.

Objectives: To review design and operational features of pregnancy support programmes, highlighting features that promote their effectiveness and efficiency, and implications thereof for SA.

Methods: Systematic review of programmes providing cash or other support during pregnancy in low- and middle-income countries.

Results: Thirty-two …

Translation, Cultural Adaptation And Field-Testing Of The Thinking Healthy Program For Vietnam, Jane Fisher, Hau Nguyen, Priya Mannava, Ha Tran, Thao Dam, Tran Huong, Thach Tran, Kelly Durrant, Atif Rahman, Stanley Luchters

Population Health, East Africa

Background: Depression and anxiety are prevalent among women in low- and lower-middle income countries who are pregnant or have recently given birth. There is promising evidence that culturally-adapted, evidence-informed, perinatal psycho-educational programs implemented in local communities are effective in reducing mental health problems. The Thinking Healthy Program (THP) has proved effective in Pakistan. The aims were to adapt the THP for rural Vietnam; establish the program’s comprehensibility, acceptability and salience for universal use, and investigate whether administration to small groups of women might be of equivalent effectiveness to administration in home visits to individual women.

Methods: The THP …