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Obstetrics

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Evaluating the Impact of the Nigerian Midwives Service Scheme

Sep 15, 2015

To improve maternal and child health, the Nigerian government introduced the Midwives Service Scheme (MSS), a program to increase access to skilled care in rural areas. Experts evaluated the impact of MSS and found that initial improvements were not sustained.
Report

The Urban Child Institute CANDLE Study

Dec 21, 2015

The Urban Child Institute developed the Conditions Affecting Neurocognitive Development and Learning in Early Childhood (CANDLE) Study to identify what factors during pregnancy and early childhood affect a child's development and ability to learn.

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Blog

The Postal Service, Election Security, Reducing Child Deaths: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the role of the U.S. Postal Service, preparing for the presidential election, reducing child deaths in Nigeria, and more.

Jun 26, 2020
Research Brief

Reducing Child Deaths in Nigeria

A program paid expectant mothers in Nigeria to use prenatal, delivery, and postnatal health services, resulting in an increase in use of care. This led to a substantial decrease in child deaths. Scaling this program up across Nigeria could reduce stillbirths by 85,000 annually.

Jun 22, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

Healthcare at the Beginning of Life and Child Survival: Evidence from a Cash Transfer Experiment in Nigeria

We study the effects of a cash transfer program in Nigeria in which households were offered a payment of $14 conditioned on uptake of health services.

Dec 20, 2019
Commentary

Meghan Markle May Avoid the Spotlight After Giving Birth and Send a Powerful Public Health Message

Meghan Markle plans to break from royal tradition by declining to present her baby to the public on the the steps of the maternity ward, hours after giving birth, with flawless hair and makeup. This could bring attention to many of the postpartum challenges faced by women everywhere.

Apr 11, 2019
Journal Article

Journal Article

Stigma Gets in My Way: Factors Affecting Client-Provider Communication Regarding Childbearing Among People Living with HIV in Uganda

Among Ugandan HIV clients and health care providers, communication about childbearing needs is poor and associated with stigma.

Apr 10, 2018
Journal Article

Journal Article

Health Care at Birth and Infant Mortality: Evidence from Nighttime Deliveries in Nigeria

Ensuring that Nigerian women giving birth have access to health facilities will likely reduce infant mortality.

Dec 29, 2017
Journal Article

Journal Article

Going to Scale: Design and Implementation Challenges of a Program to Increase Access to Skilled Birth Attendants in Nigeria

A program to increase the number of skilled birth attendants in Nigeria was hampered by design, implementation and operational challenges.

Jun 13, 2017
Journal Article

Journal Article

Correlates of Electronic Cigarettes Use Before and During Pregnancy

Women of reproductive age were more likely to use electronic cigarettes than smoking cessation aids to quit smoking, suggesting an urgent need to understand the potential risks and benefits of e-cigarette use in this population.

May 19, 2017
Journal Article

New Parent Home Visiting Program Reduces Infants' Need for Medical Care

Infants whose families took part in a new parent home visit program were less likely to visit the emergency room and made fewer primary care visits during their first year of life. The program benefited at-risk families and those who had no risk factors.

Jan 27, 2017
Commentary

Fighting the Zika Virus: What Public Health Officials Need to Do

For now, public health officials and their partners must do all they can to control Zika virus, using the tools at hand. That may include instituting a public health campaign to reduce mosquito-breeding sites and promoting prudent protection against mosquito bites.

Jan 28, 2016
Research Brief

Evaluating Nigeria's Efforts to Improve Maternal and Child Health

Nigeria is the world's second-largest contributor to under-five and maternal mortality. To address low rates of use of maternal and child health services, the government deployed midwives to work in rural communities. How effective has this program been?

Sep 15, 2015
Journal Article

Journal Article

Rates of Major Obstetrical Complications Vary Almost Fivefold Among U. S. Hospitals

Our finding that the rate of major obstetrical complications varies markedly across US hospitals should prompt clinicians and policy makers to develop comprehensive quality metrics for obstetrical care and focus on improving obstetrical outcomes.

Aug 1, 2014
Report

Implementation Challenges Delay Home Visiting Services in New Mexico

Home visiting programs can deliver much-needed health care to vulnerable children and their families. However, program implementation efforts in New Mexico have been thwarted by funding delays, insufficient resources, and poor execution of crucial capacity-building tools.

Jul 23, 2014
Project

Improving Infant and Maternal Health in Rural Nigeria

The BORN Study examines efforts to improve maternal and infant health in Nigeria, where more than 250,000 infants die each year. BORN findings could have wide-ranging impact on health in the region.

Jun 13, 2013
Journal Article

Journal Article

Effect of Chiranjeevi Yojana on Institutional Deliveries and Neonatal and Maternal Outcomes in Gujarat, India: A Difference-In-Differences Analysis

In an observational study using a difference-in-differences design, the relationship between the Chiranjeevi Yojana programme and the probability of delivery in health-care institutions, the probability of obstetric complications and mean household expenditure for deliveries was subsequently examined.

Jan 1, 2013
Journal Article

Journal Article

Prenatal, Perinatal, Early Life, and Sociodemographic Factors Underlying Racial Differences in the Likelihood of High Body Index in Early Childhood

Racial disparities in early childhood high BMI were largely explained by potentially modifiable risk and protective factors.

Oct 16, 2012
Report

Report

Closing the Gap Between Supply and Demand for Nurse Practitioners Providing Sexual and Reproductive Health Services

Inadequate numbers of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) trained in Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) and expanding health insurance coverage from health care reform will create a gap in NPs to meet SRH needs. Policy options that could help close this gap are examined.

Jun 29, 2012
Report

Report

Achieving Strong Teamwork Practices in Hospital Labor and Delivery Units

To learn how hospital labor and delivery units can achieve effective and sustainable teamwork practices and how much such practices affect staff experiences and patient outcomes, RAND researchers studied five units as they implemented improvements.

Oct 7, 2010

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RAND Topic:
Obstetrics

Topic Synonyms:
Tocology

Research conducted by

RAND Health Care