India Sees Improvement in Maternal & Infant Health: CMAJ

Community-based health programmes in parts of India, Ethiopia and Nigeria have been successful in improving health care for mothers and newborns, but inequities still exist, says a new study.The study was published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ).According to the researchers, underlying inequities in these rural settings mean that more work is needed to reach the poorest families, who bear the greatest burden of maternal and newborn mortality.Also Read: Experts Call To Boost Efforts to Reduce Maternal, Newborn DeathsTanya Marchant, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK“Our findings have both an optimistic and a pessimistic interpretation, in that families from all socio-economic status groups benefited, but inequities have also persisted.” To assess the impact of community-based health interventions linked to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, an international team of researchers looked at eight essential maternal and newborn health indicators in rural India, Ethiopia and Nigeria, representing more than 22 million people.Indicators included antenatal and postnatal care, births in health care facilities, hygienic umbilical cord care, breastfeeding initiation and more.The researchers found some improvements. For example, more women in Ethiopia and Uttar Pradesh, India, had access to maternity care in 2015 than in 2012.In Gombe, Nigeria, socioeconomic issues as well as the Boko Haram terror threat prevented most women from receiving adequate care, although some positive family behaviour, such as hygienic cord care, showed marked improvement.Despite this progress, it was striking that in all three settings the number of newborns receiving early postnatal care did not improve.Study Author“Improving outcomes for mothers and newborns requires not only structural changes in the provision of care, but also behavioural changes by individuals, communities and health care providers.” (This story was auto-published from a syndicated feed. No part of the story has been edited by FIT.)(FIT is launching its #PollutionKaSolution campaign. Join us by becoming an anti-air pollution warrior. Send in your questions, your stories of how to tackle air pollution and your ideas to FIT@thequint.com)Also Read: Unequal Progress In Global Child and Maternal Health : UN Report

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India Sees Improvement in Maternal & Infant Health: CMAJ

India Sees Improvement in Maternal & Infant Health: CMAJ

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