Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) has gained some attention and several literature reviews have been published. However, both original papers and reviews tend to focus on absorbent access and use and not on the disposal of menstrual waste. This review aims to fill a gap in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector by bringing a focus specifically on menstrual hygiene safe disposal in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). We reviewed published literature since 2002 on menstrual hygiene with a focus on menstrual waste management and menstrual absorbent disposal in LMIC. Database searches were conducted of both peer reviewed literature and grey literature, in addition to hand searching of references of relevant earlier literature reviews. In total 152 articles and reports were identified and 75 met the inclusion criteria and was included in the final review. Existing polices on MHM was also reviewed with a focus on India and South Africa. The review showed that disposal of menstrual waste is often neglected MHM and sanitation value chains, leading to improper disposal and negative impacts on users, the sanitation systems and the environment. Findings call for further research to gain better understandings of MHM waste streams, disposal behaviors, absorbent materials and waste management technologies to deliver health, safety, mobility and dignity for women and girls.

Background: India's elderly population is rising at an unprecedented rate, with a majority living in rural areas. Health challenges associated with ageing, changing social networks and limited public health infrastructure are issues faced by the elderly and caregivers. We examined perceptions of health needs of the elderly across local stakeholders in an urbanizing rural area. Methods: The qualitative study was conducted among participants in the Andhra Pradesh Children and Parents Study (APCAPS) site in Rangareddy district, Telangana. We collected data using focus group discussions and interviews among communities (n = 6), health providers (n = 9) and administrators (n = 6). We assessed stakeholders' views on the influence of urbanization on health issues faced and interventions for alleviating these challenges. We used a conceptual-analytical model to derive themes and used an inductive approach to organizing emerging codes as per a priori themes. These were organized as per thematic groups and ranked by different authors in order of importance. Bronfebrenner's theory was used to understand stakeholder perspectives and suggest interventions within four identified spheres of influence -individual, household, community and services. Results: Stakeholders reported frailty, lack of transport and dependence on others as factors impacting health access of the elderly. Existing public health systems were perceived as overburdened and insensitive towards the elderly. Urbanization was viewed positively, but road accidents, crime and loneliness were significant concerns. Interventions suggested by stakeholders included health service outreach, lifestyle counseling, community monitoring of healthcare and engagement activities. Conclusions: We recommend integrating outreach services and lifestyle counseling within programs for care of the elderly. Community institutions can play an important role in the delivery and monitoring of health and social services for the elderly.

BackgroundEvidence suggests that gender-integrated interventions, which actively seek to identify and integrate activities that address the role of gender norms and dynamics, improve family planning (FP) and maternal health (MH). To understand the link between the gender components of interventions and FP and MH outcomes, it is critical to examine the gender measures used in evaluations.MethodsWe conducted a systematic review of evaluations of gender-integrated FP and MH interventions in low- and middle-income countries. We examine characteristics of the interventions and their evaluations, and summarize women’s empowerment and related gender measures.ResultsOut of 16 evaluation articles, five reported the theoretical or conceptual model that guided the intervention. Twelve described how gender was quantitatively measured and identified 13 women’s empowerment and related gender constructs. Gender scales or indexes were used in five evaluations, three of which noted that their scales had been validated. Less than one third of articles reported examining the effect of gender on FP or MH.ConclusionsEvaluations of gender-integrated FP and MH interventions do not consistently describe how gender influences FP and MH outcomes or include validated gender measures within their studies. As a result, examining the pathways through which interventions empower women and the manner in which women’s empowerment leads to changes in FP and MH outcomes remains a challenge. Valid measures of commonly reported women’s empowerment and gender constructs, such as gender-equitable attitudes and women’s decision-making power, must be adapted and used within evaluations to examine how empowerment and improvements in gender-related factors can produce positive FP and MH outcomes.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12884-017-1500-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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