Promoting gender equity in a home visits programme: a qualitative study in Northern Nigeria.

Background: Gender inequities remain critical determinants influencing maternal health. Harmful gender norms and gender-based violence adversely affect maternal health. Gendered division of labour, lack of access to and control of resources, and limited women's decision-making autonomy impede women's access to maternal healthcare services.

The Equity Impact of Universal Home Visits to Pregnant Women and Their Spouses in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Secondary Analysis From a Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial.

Background: Socio-economically disadvantaged women have poor maternal health outcomes. Maternal health interventions often fail to reach those who need them most and may exacerbate inequalities. In Bauchi State, Nigeria, a recent cluster randomised controlled trial (CRCT) showed an impressive impact on maternal health outcomes of universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses.

Added value of video edutainment on android handsets in home visits to improve maternal and child health in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Secondary analysis from a cluster randomised controlled trial.

Objective: A trial of evidence-based health promotion home visits to pregnant women and their spouses in northern Nigeria found significant improvements in maternal and child health outcomes. This study tested the added value for these outcomes of including video edutainment in the visits.

Methods: In total, 19,718 households in three randomly allocated intervention wards (administrative areas) received home visits including short videos on android handsets to spark discussion about local risk factors for maternal and child health; 16,751 households in three control wards received visits with only verbal discussion about risk factors.

Community Groups Co-Design Evidence-Based Docudramas to Communicate About Child Spacing in Bauchi State, Nigeria: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.

In Bauchi State, northern Nigeria, communities recognise short birth interval ( in the Hausa language) as harmful, but family planning is a sensitive topic. This paper describes the development of a culturally safe way to communicate about in a conservative Muslim setting. The objective was to co-design culturally safe communication material, based on local knowledge about short birth interval, to share with women and men in households.

Impact-Oriented Dialogue for Culturally Safe Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Protocol for a Codesigned Pragmatic Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Adolescents (10-19 years) are a big segment of the Nigerian population, and they face serious risks to their health and well-being. Maternal mortality is very high in Nigeria, and rates of pregnancy and maternal deaths are high among female adolescents. Rates of HIV infection are rising among adolescents, gender violence and sexual abuse are common, and knowledge about sexual and reproductive health risks is low.

Universal home visits improve male knowledge and attitudes about maternal and child health in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Secondary outcome analysis of a stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial.

Background: The World Health Organization recommends increased male involvement to improve maternal and newborn health in low- and middle-income countries, but few studies have measured the impact of male-engagement interventions on targeted men. A trial of universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses in Nigeria improved maternal and child health outcomes. This analysis examines the impact of the visits on male spouses.

Participatory health research under COVID-19 restrictions in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Feasibility of cellular teleconferencing for virtual discussions with community groups in a low-resource setting.

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers have used Internet-based applications to conduct virtual group meetings, but this is not feasible in low-resource settings. In a community health research project in Bauchi State, Nigeria, COVID-19 restrictions precluded planned face-to-face meetings with community groups. We tested the feasibility of using cellular teleconferencing for these meetings.

"I had to change my attitude": narratives of most significant change explore the experience of universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses in Bauchi State, Nigeria.

Background: Universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses in Bauchi State, northern Nigeria, discussed local evidence about maternal and child health risks actionable by households. The expected results chain for improved health behaviours resulting from the visits was based on the CASCADA model, which includes Conscious knowledge, Attitudes, Subjective norms, intention to Change, Agency to change, Discussion of options, and Action to change. Previous quantitative analysis confirmed the impact of the visits on maternal and child outcomes.

Impact of universal home visits on child health in Bauchi State, Nigeria: a stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial.

Background: Nigeria is the second biggest contributor to global child mortality. Infectious diseases continue to be major killers. In Bauchi State, Nigeria, a stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial tested the health impacts of universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses.

Causes of short birth interval (kunika) in Bauchi State, Nigeria: systematizing local knowledge with fuzzy cognitive mapping.

Background: Short birth intervals, defined by the World Health Organization as less than 33 months, may damage the health and wellbeing of children, mothers, and their families. People in northern Nigeria recognise many adverse effects of short birth interval (kunika in the Hausa language) but it remains common. We used fuzzy cognitive mapping to systematize local knowledge of causes of kunika to inform the co-design of culturally safe strategies to address it.

Impact of home visits to pregnant women and their spouses on gender norms and dynamics in Bauchi State, Nigeria: Narratives from visited men and women.

Background: Maternal and newborn child health are priority concerns in Bauchi State, northern Nigeria. Increased male involvement in reproductive health is recommended by the World Health Organization. A trial of a program of universal home visits to pregnant women and their spouses, with an intention to increase male involvement in pregnancy and childbirth, showed improvements in actionable risk factors and in maternal morbidity.

"Kunika women are always sick": views from community focus groups on short birth interval (kunika) in Bauchi state, northern Nigeria.

Background: In Northern Nigeria, short birth interval is common. The word kunika in the Hausa language describes a woman becoming pregnant before weaning her last child. A sizeable literature confirms an association between short birth interval and adverse perinatal and maternal health outcomes.

Factors associated with short birth interval in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review.

Background: There is ample evidence of associations between short birth interval and adverse maternal and child health outcomes, including infant and maternal mortality. Short birth interval is more common among women in low- and middle-income countries. Identifying actionable aspects of short birth interval is necessary to address the problem.

The impact of universal home visits with pregnant women and their spouses on maternal outcomes: a cluster randomised controlled trial in Bauchi State, Nigeria.

Introduction: Maternal mortality in Nigeria is extremely high. Access to quality antenatal and obstetric care is limited. In Bauchi State, we found maternal morbidity was associated with domestic violence, heavy work in pregnancy, ignorance of danger signs, and lack of spousal communication.

Afri-Can Forum 2 : Johannesburg, South Africa. 16-18 February 2015.

A1 Introduction to the 2nd synchronicity forum of GHRI/CHVI-funded Canadian and African HIV prevention and vaccine teams O1 Voluntary medical male circumcision for prevention of heterosexual transmission of HIV in adult males in Soweto: What do indicators and incidence rate show? Hillary Mukudu, Neil Martinson, Benn Sartorius O2 Developing a peer-led community mobilization program for sex workers in Soweto: HIV risk and demographics Jenny Coetzee, Janan Dietrich, Kgaugelo Mokgatswana, Rachel Jewkes, Glenda E. Gray O3 Salient beliefs about adherence: A qualitative survey conducted as part of the demonstration study on "treatment as prevention" (TasP) and "pre-exposure prophylaxis" (PrEP) among female sex workers (FSWS) in Cotonou, Benin Marylène Dugas, Luc Béhanzin, Fernand A. Guédou, Marie-Pierre Gagnon, Michel Alary O4 Relative perception of risk as a driver of unsafe sexual practices among key populations: Cases of fisherfolk and women and their partners involved in multiple sexual partnerships in Uganda Rwamahe Rutakumwa, Martin Mbonye, Thadeus Kiwanuka, Sarah Nakamanya, Richard Muhumuza, Winfred Nalukenge, Janet Seeley O5 Exploring the acceptability of new biomedical HIV prevention technologies among MSM, adolescents and heterosexual adults in South Africa Millicent Atujuna, Melissa Wallace, Ben Brown, Linda Gail Bekker, Peter A.

Insights Into Intimate Partner Violence in Pregnancy: Findings From a Cross-Sectional Study in Two States in Nigeria.

A household survey and focus group discussions examined the frequency and risk factors for physical intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy in two Nigerian states. Some 22% of women in Cross River and 9% in Bauchi reported IPV in their last pregnancy. The risk was higher in communities where more women reported IPV in the past year and lower among less poor women with more educated partners.

Male responsibility and maternal morbidity: a cross-sectional study in two Nigerian states.

Background: Nigeria continues to have high rates of maternal morbidity and mortality. This is partly associated with lack of adequate obstetric care, partly with high risks in pregnancy, including heavy work. We examined actionable risk factors and underlying determinants at community level in Bauchi and Cross River States of Nigeria, including several related to male responsibility in pregnancy.

Devolution and public perceptions and experience of health services in Pakistan: linked cross sectional surveys in 2002 and 2004.

Background: The government of Pakistan introduced devolution in 2001. Responsibility for delivery of most health services passed from provincial to district governments. Two national surveys examined public opinions, use, and experience of health services in 2001 and 2004, to assess the impact of devolution on these services from the point of view of the public.

Barriers to disclosing and reporting violence among women in Pakistan: findings from a national household survey and focus group discussions.

Worldwide, many women who experience domestic violence keep their experience secret. Few report to official bodies. In a national survey of abuse against women in Pakistan, we examined factors related to disclosure: women who had experienced physical violence telling someone about it.

One size does not fit all: local determinants of measles vaccination in four districts of Pakistan.

Background: Rates of childhood vaccination in Pakistan remain low.There is continuing debate about the role of consumer and service factors in determining levels of vaccination in developing countries.

Methods: In a stratified random cluster sample of census enumeration areas across four districts in Pakistan, household interviews about vaccination of children and potentially related factors with 10,423 mothers of 14,542 children preceded discussion of findings in separate male and female focus groups.