Publications by authors named "Odland M"
Background: Despite strong evidence-based strategies for prevention and management, global efforts to reduce deaths from postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) have failed, and it remains the leading cause of maternal mortality. We conducted a detailed review of all maternal deaths from 33 facilities in Malawi to identify health system weaknesses leading to deaths from PPH.
Methods: Data were collected regarding every maternal death occurring across all district and central hospitals in Malawi.
Article Synopsis
- Caesarean sections (CS) are the most common major surgery worldwide, but they pose significant risks for maternal mortality, especially in low-resource settings like Malawi, where a study reviewed maternal deaths from 2020 to 2022.
- The study found that over half of maternal deaths (51.8%) occurred after CS, with women undergoing CS being five times more likely to die compared to those who delivered vaginally, due to causes like postpartum hemorrhage, eclampsia, and infection.
- Health system issues contributed to these deaths, including delayed treatment and inadequate monitoring, indicating a pressing need to enhance the safety and management of CS in healthcare practices.
Article Synopsis
- * The MPHIA survey, conducted between January 2020 and April 2021, involved over 13,000 women to estimate cervical cancer screening prevalence and its association with demographic factors.
- * Results show a 16.5% overall prevalence of self-reported cervical cancer screening, with higher rates among women living with HIV (37.8%) and the Southwest zone reporting the highest screening rates (24.1%).
Climate change poses a significant threat to women's health in sub-Saharan Africa, yet the impact of climate change on maternal health is rarely reported in the region. Using an existing Maternal Surveillance Platform (MATSurvey), we estimated the immediate impact of Cyclone Freddy on maternal health care service indicators in Malawi. We analysed facility-level data for pregnant women up to 42 weeks post-partum using the national MATSurvey database.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: All Nepalese citizens have the right to high-quality healthcare services free of charge. To achieve this, healthcare services for the rural population in Nepal need to be improved in terms of personnel, medicines, and medical equipment.
Objectives: To explore challenges and possible improvements healthcare personnel experience when travelling to rural parts of Nepal to provide healthcare.
As a lower middle-income country, Pakistan faces multiple issues that influence the course of healthy ageing. Although there is some understanding of these issues and the objective health outcomes of people in Pakistan, there is less knowledge on the perceptions, experiences, and priorities of the ageing population and their caretakers (hereafter, "stakeholders"). The aim of the study was to identify the needs and priorities of older adults and stakeholders across both urban and rural locations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To understand commonalities and differences in injured patient experiences of accessing and receiving quality injury care across three lower-income and middle-income countries.
Design: A qualitative interview study. The interviews were audiorecorded, transcribed and thematically analysed.
Background: There are few data reporting the needs and priorities of older adults in Brazil. This hampers the development and/or implementation of policies aimed at older adults to help them age well. The aim of this study was to understand areas of importance, priorities, enablers and obstacles to healthy ageing as identified by older adults and key stakeholders in both urban and rural environments.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The National Older Person's Policy of 2021 in Rwanda highlights the need for social protection of older populations. However, there is a lack of local knowledge regarding the priorities and challenges to healthy aging faced by older people and their caregivers.
Objectives: This study aimed to identify and compare the needs and priorities of older people and other stakeholders involved in caring for them in rural and urban areas of Rwanda.
Objectives: Using the 'Four Delay' framework, our study aimed to identify and explore barriers to accessing quality injury care from the injured patients', caregivers' and community leaders' perspectives.
Design: A qualitative study assessing barriers to trauma care comprising 20 in-depth semistructured interviews and 4 focus group discussions was conducted. The data were analysed thematically.
Background: Pulmonary tuberculosis due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis can be challenging to diagnose when sputum samples cannot be obtained, which is especially problematic in children and older people. We systematically appraised the performance characteristics and diagnostic accuracy of upper respiratory tract sampling for diagnosing active pulmonary tuberculosis.
Methods: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Cinahl, Web of Science, Global Health, and Global Health Archive databases for studies published between database inception and Dec 6, 2022 that reported on the accuracy of upper respiratory tract sampling for tuberculosis diagnosis compared with microbiological testing of sputum or gastric aspirate reference standard.
Article Synopsis
- The study evaluates health systems governance for injury care in Ghana, Rwanda, and South Africa, focusing on the perspectives of policymakers and care providers.
- An online assessment tool with 37 questions was developed, covering ten governance principles, and was distributed to selected stakeholders for data collection.
- Results showed Rwanda scored highest on governance (70%), followed by South Africa (59%) and Ghana (48%), indicating that transparency needs significant improvement across all countries.
We used national facility-level data from all government hospitals in Malawi to examine the effects of the second and third COVID-19 waves on maternal and neonatal outcomes and access to care during September 6, 2020-October 31, 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic affected maternal and neonatal health not only through direct infections but also through disruption of the health system, which could have wider indirect effects on critical maternal and neonatal outcomes. In an interrupted time series analysis, we noted a cumulative 15.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Gestational hypertension and preeclampsia are the most common types of hypertensive disorder in pregnancy and these conditions are associated with adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. This study aims to determine the differences in pregnancy outcomes in women with gestational hypertension and preeclampsia.
Methods: A retrospective study was done at The Paropakar Maternity and Women's Hospital, a tertiary level hospital, in the Kathmandu, Nepal.
Population exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) may result in detrimental health effects, especially to pregnant women, developing foetuses and young children. We are reporting the findings of a cross-sectional study of 605 mothers in their late pregnancy, recruited between August 2020 and July 2021 in southern Malawi, and their offspring. The aim was to measure the concentrations of selected POPs in their maternal serum and indicate associations with social demographic characteristics and birth outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSerum Concentrations of Selected Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) in Pregnant Women and Associations with Birth Outcomes. A Cross-Sectional Study from Southern Malawi.
Int J Environ Res Public Health
January 2023
Pervasive exposure to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) shows associations with adverse pregnancy outcomes. The aim of the present study was to examine the determinants of different serum PFAS concentrations in late pregnancy and their relationship with birth outcomes in southern Malawi. The sample included 605 pregnant women with a mean age of 24.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Timely access to quality injury care saves lives and prevents disabilities. The impact of social determinants of health on the high injury prevalence in South Africa is well documented, however, evidence of their role in accessing injury care is lacking. This study explored the social determinants of seeking and reaching injury care in South Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Abortion-related complications are among the common causes of maternal mortality in Malawi. Misoprostol is recommended for the treatment of first-trimester incomplete abortions but is seldom used for post-abortion care in Malawi.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study that used mixed methods was conducted in three hospitals in central Malawi.
Objectives: The study was conducted to determine effectiveness of a training intervention in increasing use of misoprostol in management of incomplete abortions.
Design: A quasi-experimental study with training intervention on use of misoprostol in treatment of incomplete abortion.
Setting: Five secondary-level public hospitals in Malawi, one in urban and four in semiurban settings.
Background: In Malawi, abortion is only legal to save a pregnant woman's life. Treatment for complications after unsafe abortions has a massive impact on the already impoverished health care system. Even though manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) and misoprostol are the recommended treatment options for incomplete abortion in the first trimester, surgical management using sharp curettage is still one of the primary treatment methods in Malawi.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFComplications after abortion are a major cause of maternal death. Incomplete abortions are common and require treatment with surgical or medical uterine evacuation. Even though misoprostol is a cheaper and safer option, it is rarely used in Malawi.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Access to care for cardiovascular disease risk factors (CVDRFs) in low- and middle-income countries is limited. We aimed to describe the need and access to care for people with CVDRF and the preparedness of the health system to treat these in Bo, Sierra Leone.
Methods: Data from a 2018 household survey conducted in Bo, Sierra Leone, was analysed.
Article Synopsis
- Surgical healthcare in South Africa faces significant inequities, particularly in the public health sector, necessitating the identification of barriers to access and prioritizing research for improvement.
- A workshop in Cape Town utilized the Four Delays Framework to systematically identify barriers linked to seeking, reaching, receiving, and remaining in surgical care, leading to the discovery of 34 specific barriers.
- The findings indicate that these barriers are interconnected, highlighting the need for a multifaceted approach to improve access to surgical care and ultimately promote equity in healthcare services across the country.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the links between multimorbidity (having two or more chronic conditions) and outcomes like mortality and hospitalisation in Iran, focusing on an aging population.
- Researchers analyzed data from over 47,000 participants aged 40-75, revealing that those with more chronic conditions had significantly higher odds of dying within 10 years and increased hospital admissions.
- Findings indicate that the effects of multimorbidity on health outcomes in Iran resemble those observed in high-income countries, highlighting a global health concern as populations in lower and middle-income countries age.