Background Globally, nearly half of all under-five deaths occur during the neonatal period. About two million dies within the first week, of which 75% come from low-resource countries, such as Rwanda. Many neonatal deaths are preventable or avoidable if parents are knowledgeable of Neonatal Danger Signs (NDS), and do not delay seeking care at a health facility. Objective To assess the parents’ knowledge of NDS and associated factors within the neonatal period at four health centers in Kigali. Method This study was a descriptive cross-sectional design. A proportionate stratified probability sampling strategy was used to select 209 parents who attended selected health centers in Kigali. Data analysis used descriptive and inferential statistics. Results The findings showed that 67% of participants had some information on NDS. Logistic regression showed that educational level, parity, number of antenatal visits, and information from healthcare providers was significantly associated with parents' knowledge of NDS. Conclusion Our findings indicate the need to enhance education of parents’ knowledge of NDS in the study population. Educational efforts also should target NDS in health centers where most Rwandan women attend antenatal care. Rwanda J Med Health Sci 2020;3(2):128-138

Background Worldwide, neonatal mortality remains a significant burden. One substantial cause of mortality is asphyxia, where neonates fail to breathe on their own at birth and need some form of assistance to initiate or maintain breathing. The Helping Babies Breathe (HBB) training program has proven to be helpful in the reduction of asphyxia-related neonatal mortality in developing countries. Objective To assess the HBB knowledge and skills retention at two-days and six-weeks post HBB training among midwives and nurses working in selected health centers in Kigali, Rwanda. Methods A quasi-experimental design with a pre-test, post-test, and intervention using HBB (2nd Edition) program was used. Sixty midwives and nurses were purposively selected from the four study sites. Knowledge and skills retention of HBB was evaluated at two-days and six-weeks post-training.  Results The majority of participants were nurses (90%), females (70%), and had advanced diploma (63%). Knowledge overall mean scores improved from pre-test (8.75) to post-test (16.90). Skills mean scores slightly dropped from 21.77 at day two to 19.73).  Conclusion Our results indicated that there was retention of knowledge and skills among the midwives and nurses at day two and six-weeks post HBB training. Refresher training programs are needed to keep providers skilled for resuscitation in order to lower neonatal mortality in Rwanda. Rwanda J Med Health Sci 2020;3(2):250-260