Tanzania

Ability to pay for maternal health services: what will it take to meet WHO standards?

Ndola Prata
Fiona Greig
Julia Walsh
Anna West
2004

High maternal morbidity and mortality in many developing countries are highly associated with poor access to and quality of health care. Here we review the economic feasibility of the WHO’s mother-baby package as a means of reducing maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity in Tanzania. This paper examines the costs of maternal health care in Tanzania, and how much can we expect households to contribute to these expenses, if the MBP were implemented. Using data from the Tanzanian 1993 Living Standard Measurement Survey (LSMS), we analyze responses from 757 women of reproductive age who...

Controlling postpartum hemorrhage after home births in Tanzania

N Prata
G Mbaruku
M Campbell
M Potts
F Vahidnia
2005

This groundbreaking pilot study demonstrates the potential impact of misoprostol for women in rural settings. In this community-based intervention trial, misoprostol was delivered by traditional birth attendants (TBAs) for PPH treatment in rural Kigoma, Tanzania. Results show that TBAs successfully administered misoprostol. Women given misoprostol to treat PPH were far less likely to need additional intervention.

OBJECTIVES: Determine safety of household management of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) with 1000 microg of rectal misoprostol, and assess possible reduction in referrals and...

Using the kanga to measure postpartum blood loss

N Prata
G Mbaruku
M Campbell
2005

In rural African settings, the colorful fabric kanga is locally-made and inexpensive; every woman owns dozens for use as skirts and shawls. The kanga has become useful as a simple solution for the complicated problem of measuring blood loss after delivery. This commentary describes remarkable results when traditional birth attendants in Tanzania use the kanga to identify postpartum hemorrhage.

Published in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (2005) 89, 49—50

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Global availability of misoprostol

M Campbell
M Holden
2006

Misoprostol is registered as a gastric ulcer drug in many middle to high income countries; it is also used ‘off label’ in these same countries to prevent and control PPH. Its ease of administration and stability in tropical climates make it an ideal drug for use in home births, as well as with Active Management of the Third Stage of Labor (AMTSL) in any busy hospital.

Published in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 94 (2) 2006, 151-152

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Conservation and family planning in Tanzania: the TACARE experience

Amy A. Grossman
Mary Mavanza
2007

Abstract: Community-based distribution (CBD) programs present an alternative way of effectively reaching people in rural areas of developing countries where conventional methods of delivery do not exist or fail. This paper reviews the experience and findings from the Jane Goodall Institute’s (JGI) TACARE program in the Kigoma region of Tanzania. It focuses on the family planning CBD program and its integration within the TACARE program to meet the broader mission of JGI’s conservation efforts. Both qualitative and survey data suggest that the CBD program meets the needs for contraception...

Community-Based Availability of Misoprostol: Is it safe?

Ndola Prata
Godfrey Mbaruku
Amy A. Grossman
Martine Holston
Kristina Hsieh
2009

African Journal of Reproductive Health, 2009

This paper evaluates the safety and acceptability of long-term community-based use of misoprostol for management of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in home-births, by comparing deliveries with and without misoprostol use in communities of Kigoma, Tanzania.

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Misoprostol Distribution at Antenatal Care in Tanzania

VSI
UC Berkeley Bixby Center
2011

Final results shared at the dissemination meeting on 3 March 2011 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This brief highlights results from the Ifakara Health Institute and VSI project to protect women from postpartum hemorrhage at home births in four districts of Tanzania.

For the full technical report, click here.

Tanzania PPH Misoprostol Poster

UC Berkeley Bixby Center
VSI
2011

Information, education and communication (IEC) campaign sample from a postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) operations research project in Tanzania using the local Swahili language.

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AVAILABILITY CASE STUDY: Misoprostol in Tanzania

VSI
2012

In 2011, VSI initiated a comprehensive assessment of the current challenges to ensuring the everyday availability of misoprostol in Tanzania, with the goal of identifying opportunities to improve access over time. This brief summarizes the key findings, recommendations and sample activities to accelerate progress toward increased availability of this essential medicine in Tanzania.

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