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There is an ongoing development in the paediatric palliative care (PPC) program in Southeast Asia (SEA). However, the implementation process has not been clearly understood among lower-middle-income countries (LMICs) in this region. The purpose of this paper is to review and synthesise research about the implementation process of 7 identified LMICs in the SEA: Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Lao PDR, the Philippines, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. An integrative review utilising Whittemore and Knafi’s five-stage process was employed. Electronic searches of CINAHL, Web of Science, ProQuest, and Google Scholar (no year restriction) were conducted. From the 7599 articles retrieved, only 11 met the eligibility criteria. Each article was appraised for methodological quality (QualSyst tool and AACODS checklist) and constant comparison methods were used. Two overarching themes emerged in this review - the gaps in PPC standards, practice framework, and guidelines and the PPC challenges and implementation strategies. Understanding the implementation science of PPC among LMICs in the SEA region addresses the gap between idealism and realism. It provides reliable information in the development of strategic work plans that will improve the implementation process and promote the translation of EBIs into practice significant to the quality of paediatric patient outcomes.

Introduction: Home visiting is recommended for mothers and young infants during the first week of life to provide needed support. This study describes the significance of home visiting in providing care to Filipino mothers and their infants during the postpartum period. Methodology: Using a descriptive qualitative design, individual interviews were conducted with 10 mothers, four registered nurses, and five barangay health workers involved in home visits. Data analysis was guided by the four phases of Leininger’s ethnonursing method. Results: Three themes emerged: (1) home visiting provides accessible, affordable, and meaningful interventions; (2) home visiting allows for contextual understanding of mothers’ behaviors and realistic planning of care; and (3) barangay health workers promote mothers’ engagement in care. Conclusion: Home visits enable negotiation of differences between generic and professional care practices, thus enhancing professional collaboration with families and community workers, potentiating culturally congruent participation and empowerment of clients in their care.

Objectives. To investigate home visiting for mothers and young infants, age birth-to-12 months, program goals, interventions used, home visitor characteristics and qualifications, and the program content and outcomes. Methods. Electronic databases PubMed, CINAHL, ScienceDirect, and Sagepub were used. Eleven studies investigating home visiting from 2011-to-2016 were included. Studies were included if they: 1) were a primary study; 2)commenced during the antepartum or early postpartum period for mothers and finished before or when the infant was12 months old; 3) and provided a description of home visiting program in terms of goal, type of home visitor, content,length, and outcomes. Data extraction included goals, activities, home visitor characteristics and qualifications,and outcomes. A descriptive approach was used to synthesize data. Results. Home visiting impacted birth preparedness, newborn care practices, breastfeeding practices, and home environment necessary for maternal wellness and child health and development. Conclusion. Home visits in developed and underdeveloped countries create positive outcomes for mothers and infants. It is important to understand the process in order to make it more effective.

Newborn bloodspot screening (NBS) has been a key instrument in the early detection and management of congenital disorders worldwide.1 NBS is a set of tests performed in the early life of the newborn to screen for conditions that can cause severe illness or death unless detected and treated early.2 In the Philippines, the ratification of the Republic Act 9288, known as the Newborn Screening Act of 2004, ushered in a comprehensive policy and national system for ensuring NBS.3 From the six included conditions, the ENBS Program now includes 29 conditions 4 and is now part of the Newborn Care Package of Philhealth.1 Pre-screening education is an essential component of the comprehensive NBS system to inform parents about NBS before the procedure.5 The goal is to increase testing coverage.5 There has been an increasing trend in the uptake of NBS testing since its introduction in 1996. Testing coverage was 80.4% in 2020.4 In 2018, the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) reported a 100% testing coverage with all 4,828 live birth deliveries screened. 6 This success was attributed mainly to the efforts of the Newborn Screening Nurses Core Group, which ensured that all parents of newborns were informed about the availability of NBS. 6 Health workers must apprise parents of the availability of NBS, its benefits, and the mechanisms involved.3 Parents should also be informed about their duty to provide their newborn with protection from disabilities that are preventable through NBS.3 The relevance of pre-screening education on NBS does not only lie in increasing testing coverage uptake. Of equal importance, preparing parents and teaching them about what to do when they receive a positive testing result on NBS is also included in the pre-screening education.7 Parents whose newborn is screened positive may not know what to do next and may be too scared to take appropriate action. Because of this, parents may not likely return for the confirmatory tests. Therefore, the dissemination of correct NBS procedures is necessary.8 Literature confirms that parents given information about newborn screening beforehand are more adherent to follow-ups in case of positive screening results.9 Increased uptake of confirmatory tests can be facilitated through pre-screening education. The period before the baby’s birth can be a good time for teaching parents about NBS where they are eagerly waiting and are receptive to the information given to them. In addition, information can be provided during antenatal visits when parents are waiting for their turn for a checkup.10 Formal integration of pre-screening education on NBS in prenatal care will maximize its purpose and benefits. Therefore, health workers in the different facilities, specifically frontliners in the antenatal clinics, should be fully equipped to handle this task.