Trend and Determinants of Unmet Need for Family Planning Services among Currently Married Women and Sexually Active Unmarried Women Aged 15-49 in Nigeria (2003—2013)

This study examines trend and determinants of unmet need for family planning (FP) among currently married women and sexually active unmarried women of reproductive age 15-49 in Nigeria over a period of 10 years (2003-2013). Data from three consecutive Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (2003, 2008 and 2013) were analyzed. The results show that the unmet need for FP declined between 2008 and 2013 to a level less comparable with the situation in 2003. The significant determinants of unmet need for FP included age, marital status, education, religion, current work status, decision-making on spending personal earnings, gender of household heads, household wealth status, number of living children (including current pregnancy), rural-urban residence, home visit by FP workers and recent exposure to FP messages via mass media. It is therefore necessary that FP programmers continue to develop specific responses that address the barriers to contraceptive use.

Contraceptive Use and Its Socio-economic Determinants among Women in North-East and North-West Regions of Nigeria: A Comparative Analysis

This study investigated the socio-economic factors associated with reported contraceptive use by women of reproductive age in northern Nigeria. Bivariate and logistic regression analysis was applied to successive Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS: 1999-2013) data to examine the relationship between reported use of modern contraceptives (the dependent variable) and the socioeconomic status (age, rural-urban residence, education, religion, current work status, marital status, and number of living children) of these women in the north-east (NE) and north-west (NW) geo-political zones (GPZs). The results indicated that women’s socio-economic status were positively associated with use of modern contraceptives in the NW in 1999 (AOR=2.15; 95%CI=1.47, 3.14), 2003 (AOR=1.64; 95%CI=1.30, 2.08) and 2013 (AOR=1.30; 95%CI=1.12, 1.50) and also in the north-east in 2008 (AOR=0.74; 95%CI=0.64, 0.86). Contraceptive use could increase as FP programmes better respond to the socio-economic and cultural circumstances of women in northern Nigeria

Evaluating Health Workers’ Knowledge Following the Introduction of Clinical Mentoring in Jigawa State, Northern Nigeria.

Clinical mentoring is work-based training for the capacity building of health care workers. This study determined if there were benefits and increases in knowledge levels for 33 selected health workers across 5 health facilities in Jigawa State following the introduction of clinical mentoring. Questionnaires were used to determine biodata and knowledge scores of mentored health workers and also key departmental activities before and after a 6 months period of introduction of clinical mentoring. Data was analyzed with SPSS version 20. Over 90% of the 33 mentored health workers showed an increase in their knowledge scores. The mean percentage score of the health workers increased significantly from 56.3 ± 2.1 before the start of clinical mentoring to 74.7 ± 1.7 (p<0.001) six months later. Mortality review meetings were also introduced. This study has shown that clinical mentoring is beneficial for improving the clinical knowledge of mentored health workers. (Afr J Reprod Health 2015; 19[3]: 118-125). Keywords: Health workers, clinical mentoring, capacity building, northern Nigeria Le mentorat clinique est la formation en milieu de travail pour le renforcement des capacités du personnel de la santé. Cette étude a déterminé s’il y avait des avantages et des augmentations dans les niveaux de connaissances pour les 33 membres du personnel de la santé sélectionnés à travers 5 Centres de santé de l'Etat de Jigawa suite à l'introduction de mentorat clinique. Des questionnaires ont été utilisés pour déterminer un curriculum vitae et des notes de connaissances du personnel de la santé qui sont passés par le mentorat et aussi des activités clés du ministère avant et après une période de six mois de l'introduction du mentorat clinique. Les données ont été analysées avec la version SPSS 20. Plus de 90% des 33 des membres du personnel de la santé qui ont subi le mentorat ont montré une augmentation dans leurs scores de connaissance. Le score moyen de pourcentage du personnel de la santé a augmenté considérablement de 56,3 ± 2,1 avant le début de mentorat clinique à 74,7 ± 1,7 (p <0,001) six mois plus tard. Les réunions pour l’examen de la mortalité ont été également introduites. Cette étude a montré que le mentorat clinique est bénéfique pour améliorer la connaissance clinique du personnel de la santé qui a subi le mentorat. (Afr J Reprod Health 2015; 19[3]: 118-125). Mots-clés: personnel de la santé, mentorat clinique, renforcement des capacités, nord du Nigeri

Providers\u27 and key opinion leaders\u27 attitudes, beliefs, and practices regarding emergency contraception in Nigeria: Key findings

This brief reports on a study in Nigeria to document provider attitudes, beliefs, and practices regarding emergency contraception (ECP), and to identify key opinion leaders’ opinions and insights pertaining to policy and programmatic issues in that country. Findings reveal that ECP is well known in urban Nigeria. Its provision is controlled mainly by the largely unregulated and unmonitored private sector. Government plays a distant role, thereby leaving family planning and ECP supply almost entirely in the hands of donor agencies. For wider availability and affordability of ECP products in both the private and public sectors, official policy action is required, along with increased education of potential users and providers

Providers\u27 and key opinion leaders\u27 attitudes, beliefs, and practices regarding emergency contraception in Nigeria

Despite significant progress in product development, procurement, and distribution in the past few decades, emergency contraception’s (EC) capacity to benefit many women in countries such as Nigeria is hampered by a number of potential barriers, that are not well understood. The Population Council, with support from the International Consortium for Emergency Contraception, documented EC-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices among providers in Nigeria as well as perceptions of key opinion leaders who help shape the policy environment for EC and family planning in general. Findings suggest significant gaps in Nigeria, potentially necessitating continuous training and re-training to help dispel misperceptions and negative attitudes. In Nigeria, where much of the health infrastructure, facilities, and human resources are controlled by the government, the public sector must play a greater role in providing EC-supportive policies and practices, and in monitoring their implementation

Trends and determinants of comprehensive knowledge of HIV among adolescents and young adults in Nigeria: 2003–2013

This study examined comprehensive knowledge of HIV (CKH) and its determinants among young people aged 15–24 years in Nigeria between 2003 and 2013. Secondary analysis was conducted on three rounds of NDHS 2003, 2008 and 2013 data. CKH increased significantly between 2003 and 2013, but the level reached in 2013 fell short of the global expectation for young people. Its significant determinants included gender, age, educational attainment, place and region of residence, household wealth status and uptake of HIV test. There is need to sustain all on-going effective youth-focused interventions and programmes to meet the comprehensive knowledge needs for all young people in Nigeria

Training-of-trainers of nurses and midwives as a strategy for the reduction of eclampsia-related maternal mortality in Nigeria

Background: Preeclampsia and eclampsia (PE/E) are major contributors to maternal and perinatal mortality in Nigeria. Despite the availability of current curriculum at Nigerian schools of nursing and midwifery, the knowledge on the management of PE/E among the students has remained poor. In order to reduce maternal and perinatal mortality in developing countries, targeted training and supportive supervision of frontline health care providers have been recommended. Methodology: A total of 292 tutors from 171 schools of nursing and midwifery participated in the training of the trainers' workshops on current management of PE/E across the country. Pre- and post-test assessments were administered. Six months after the training, 29 schools and 84 tutors were randomly selected for follow-up to evaluate the impact of the training. Results: Significant knowledge transfer occurred among the participants as the pretest/posttest analysis showed knowledge transmission across all the 13 knowledge items assessed. The follow-up evaluation also showed that the trained tutors conducted 19 step-down trainings and trained 157 other tutors in their respective schools. Subsequently, 2382 nursing and midwifery students were properly trained. However, six of the monitored schools (24.2%) lacked all the essential kits for teaching on PE/E. Conclusion: Updating the knowledge of tutors leads to improved preservice training of the future generation of nurses and midwives. This will likely result in higher quality of care to patients and reduce PE/E-related maternal and perinatal mortality. However, there is need to provide essential training kits for teaching of student nurses and midwives

Trends and Determinants of Comprehensive Knowledge of HIV among Adolescents and Young Adults in Nigeria: 2003 - 2013

Abstract This study examined comprehensive knowledge of HIV (CKH) and its determinants among young people aged 15-24 years in Nigeria between 2003 and 2013. Secondary analysis was conducted on three rounds of NDHS 2003, 2008 and 2013 data. CKH increased significantly between 2003 and 2013, but the level reached in 2013 fell short of the global expectation for young people. Its significant determinants included gender, age,  educational attainment, place and region of residence, household wealth status and uptake of HIV test. There is need to sustain all on-going  effective youth-focused interventions and programmes to meet the  comprehensive knowledge needs for all young people in Nigeria.Keywords: Young people, HIV and AIDS, Comprehensive knowledge, Nigeria, Determinants Cette étude a examiné la connaissance approfondie du VIH (CCV) et ses déterminants chez les jeunes gens âgés de 15 à 24 ans au Nigeria entre 2003 et 2013. Une analyse secondaire a été menée sur trois séries de données de NDHS 2003, 2008 et 2013. La CCV a augmenté de manière significative entre 2003 et 2013, mais le niveau atteint en 2013 était inférieur aux attentes mondiales pour les jeunes. Ses déterminants importants comprennent le genre, l'âge, le niveau de scolarité, le lieu et la région de résidence, l'état de la richesse des ménages et l'adoption de l‘analyse pour le dépistage du VIH. Il est nécessaire de soutenir toutes les interventions et programmes efficaces axés sur les jeunes pour répondre aux besoins globaux en connaissances de tous les jeunes du Nigeria Mots-clés: Jeunes, VIH et SIDA, connaissance compréhensive, Nigeria, déterminant

Benefits of using magnesium sulphate (MgSO₄) for eclampsia management and maternal mortality reduction: lessons from Kano State in Northern Nigeria

Abstract Background Despite clear emphasis through the Millennium Development Goals, the problem of high maternal mortality persists especially within low and middle income countries. Various studies report remarkably high maternal mortality rates in northern Nigeria, where maternal mortality rates exceed 1,000 deaths per 100,000 live births and eclampsia contributes approximately 40% of maternal deaths. Across Nigeria, diazepam is routinely used for the management of eclampsia. Prior to February 2008, diazepam was widely used for the management of eclampsia in Kano State (within northern Nigeria) with case fatality rate being over 20%. While magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) is recognized as the most effective drug for the management of eclampsia; this study aims to compare MgSO4 therapy with diazepam therapy in terms of case fatality rates and costs. Findings This retrospective study, including 1045 patients with eclampsia and pre-eclampsia during the years 2008 and 2009, reports a drop in case fatality rates from 20.9% (95% CI: 18.7, 23.2) to 2.3% (95% CI: 1.4, 3.2) among eclampsia patients following the MgSO4 intervention. The study observed no significant difference in the cost of using MgSO4 therapy compared to diazepam therapy. Conclusions The study found a remarkable reduction in case fatality rate due to eclampsia in those who received MgSO4 therapy with minimal increase in costs when compared to diazepam therapy. Concerted efforts should be focused on properly introducing MgSO4 into emergency obstetric protocols especially within developing countries to reduce maternal mortality and also impact on health system performance.</p