Costs of postabortion care in public sector health facilities in Malawi: a cross-sectional survey.

Background: Health systems could obtain substantial cost savings by providing safe abortion care rather than providing expensive treatment for complications of unsafely performed abortions. This study estimates current health system costs of treating unsafe abortion complications and compares these findings with newly-projected costs for providing safe abortion in Malawi.

Methods: We conducted in-depth surveys of medications, supplies, and time spent by clinical personnel dedicated to postabortion care (PAC) for three treatment categories (simple, severe non-surgical, and severe surgical complications) and three uterine evacuation (UE) procedure types (manual vacuum aspiration (MVA), dilation and curettage (D&C) and misoprostol-alone) at 15 purposively-selected public health facilities.

Client-pharmacy worker interactions regarding medical abortion in Zambia in 2009 and 2011.

Objective: To examine sales practices, knowledge, and behavior of pharmacy workers regarding medical abortion in 2009 and 2011 in Zambia, where hostile and stigmatizing attitudes still result in high rates of unsafe abortion.

Methods: Four mystery clients visited pharmacies during 2009 and 2011, and recorded their experiences following their interactions using a standardized form. Bivariate analysis examined pharmacy workers' attitudes, behavior, and medical abortion-dispensing practices.

Using a harm reduction lens to examine post-intervention results of medical abortion training among Zambian pharmacists.

Despite broad grounds for legal abortion in Zambia, access to abortion services remains limited. Pharmacy workers, a primary source of health care for communities, present an opportunity to bridge the gap between policy and practice. As part of a larger operations study, 80 pharmacy workers, both registered pharmacists and their assistants, participated in a training on medical abortion in 2009 and 2010.

HIV communication capacity strengthening: a critical review.

HIV communication is most effective and sustainable when it is designed and implemented locally and tailored to the local context. This requires capacity strengthening at national, subnational, and community levels. Through a review of the published and selected "grey" literature, we examine HIV communication capacity strengthening: definitions, measurements, implementation, and effects.