A qualitative analysis of text message conversations in a breastfeeding peer counselling intervention.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) breastfeeding peer counselling (BFPC) program supports optimal early life nutrition by providing evidenced-based breastfeeding protection, promotion, and support. The Lactation Advice Through Texting Can Help (LATCH) study was a randomized controlled trial that tested the effectiveness of a text messaging intervention designed to augment the BFPC program. The purpose of the present study was to understand the topics discussed during the text message exchanges between breastfeeding peer counsellors (PCs) and their clients in the intervention arm of the LATCH study, from the time of enrollment up to two-weeks postpartum.

Impact of the Lactation Advice Through Texting Can Help (LATCH) Trial on Time to First Contact and Exclusive Breastfeeding among WIC Participants.

Objective: Determine the impact of a 2-way text messaging intervention on time to contact between participants and their breastfeeding peer counselors (BFPCs) and on exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) status at 2 weeks and 3 months postpartum.

Design: Multisite, single-blind, randomized, controlled trial.

Setting: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) BFPC program.

Feasibility and acceptability of a text message intervention used as an adjunct tool by WIC breastfeeding peer counsellors: The LATCH pilot.

Breastfeeding rates among mothers in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) are lower than for other mothers in the United States. The objective of this study was to test the acceptability and feasibility of the Lactation Advice thru Texting Can Help intervention. Mothers were enrolled at 18-30 weeks gestation from two WIC breastfeeding peer counselling (PC) programmes if they intended to breastfeed and had unlimited text messaging, more than fifth-grade literacy level, and fluency in English or Spanish.

Preparing for Disaster: a Cross-Sectional Study of Social Connection and Gun Violence.

Living in communities with persistent gun violence is associated with negative social, behavioral, and health outcomes, analogous to those of a natural disaster. Taking a disaster-preparedness approach may identify targets for community-based action to respond to on-going gun violence. We assessed the relevance of adapting a disaster-preparedness approach to gun violence and, specifically, the relationship between perceived collective efficacy, its subscales of social cohesion and informal social control, and exposure to gun violence.

Yield of screening for TB and HIV among children failing to thrive in Botswana.

Background: Failure to thrive (FTT) is a sign of tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. We assessed TB and HIV prevalence in children with FTT at one clinic in Botswana.

Methods: In July 2010, we screened all children attending a 'Well Child' clinic for FTT.

Rapid psychosocial function screening test identified treatment failure in HIV+ African youth.

Psychosocial dysfunction in older children and adolescents is common and may lead to nonadherence to HIV treatments. Poor adherence leads to HIV treatment failure and the development of resistant virus. In resource-limited settings where treatment options are typically limited to only one or two available lines of therapy, identification of individuals at highest risk of failure before failure occurs is of critical importance.

Relationship of training to self-reported competency and care of adolescents in an African health care setting.

Purpose: Adolescent medicine is not a recognized specialty in most African countries and African healthcare providers receive little adolescent-specific training. We explored the association between training, self-reported competence, and clinical practice related to adolescent health in an African setting.

Methods: A total of 119 healthcare providers of various disciplines who work with adolescent patients in Francistown, Botswana were surveyed regarding their adolescent-specific training, self-reported competence, and counseling practices.

Validation of the Pediatric Symptom Checklist in HIV-infected Batswana.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the validity of the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC), a brief measure of psychosocial health, for screening HIV+ Batswana children. METHOD: Setswana versions of the parent and child PSC were administered to 509 HIV+ Batswana children (age 8-16) and their parents/guardians. Test properties were evaluated and cut-off scores were derived using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.