Accountability strategies for sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights in humanitarian settings: a scoping review

Schaaf, Marta; Boydell, Victoria; Sheff, Mallory C.; Kay, Christina; Torabi, Fatemeh; Khosla, Rajat

doi:10.1186/s13031-020-00264-2

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The support of management and program staff and the availability of surge capacity and technical guidance was widely appreciated. While this, together with the formalisation of partnerships and regular meetings and training are important activities to ensure the currency of coordination efforts in readiness for activation, so is the institutionalisation of SRHiE in national policy and accountability mechanisms [28]. National policies that highlight SRHiE as a priority and embed the MISP into disaster risk reduction (DRR) planning with attached investment and key performance indicators support the delivery of essential services in emergencies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preparing for and Responding to Sexual and Reproductive Health in Disaster Settings: Evidence From Fiji and Tonga

Beek

Drysdale

Kusen

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundPacific Island countries are vulnerable to natural disasters, including cyclones and earthquakes. Disaster preparedness is key to a well-coordinated response to preventing sexual violence and assisting survivors, reducing the transmission of HIV and other STIs, and preventing excess maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity. The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), in collaboration with its Member Associations and national and international partners, has focused on building country capacity as part of the SPRINT program to implement global standards for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) during disasters. In 2016 Tropical Cyclone Winston peaked near Fiji, and in 2018, Tropical Cyclone Gita severely impacted Tonga. This study aimed to identify the capacity development activities undertaken as part of SPRINT in Fiji and Tonga and how these enabled the SRH response to both cyclones.MethodsThis descriptive qualitative study was informed by a framework designed to assess public health emergency response capacity across various levels (systems, organizational, and individual) and two phases of the disaster management cycle (preparedness and response). key informants were recruited purposively to include diverse individuals from relevant organisations and interviewed by telephone, Zoom, Skype and email. Template analysis was used to examine the data.FindingsEight key informants were interviewed from eight organisations involved in response to cyclones Winston and Gita. Differences in the country contexts were highlighted. The existing program of training in Tonga, investment from the IPPF Humanitarian Hub, the status of the Tonga Family Health Association as the key player in the delivery of SRH, together with its long experience of delivering contract work in short time-frames and strong relationship with the Ministry of Health facilitated a relatively smooth and rapid response. In contrast, training was rapidly delivered in Fiji during the immediate response to the cyclone with the support of surge staff from IPPF. In Fiji, the response was initially hampered by a lack of clarity concerning stakeholder roles and coordination, but linkages were quickly built to enable a response. Participants highlighted the importance of personal relationships, individuals and organizations' motivation to respond, and strong rapport with the community to deliver SRH. DiscussionThis study highlights the need for comprehensive activities at multiple levels within a country and across the Pacific region to build capacity for an SRH response. While the SPRINT initiative has been implemented across several regions to improve organisational and national capacity preparedness training for communities can be strengthened. This research outlines the importance of formalising partnerships and regular meetings and training to ensure the currency of coordination efforts in readiness for activation. However, work is needed to further institutionalise SRH in emergencies in national policy and accountability mechanisms.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preparing for and Responding to Sexual and Reproductive Health in Disaster Settings: Evidence From Fiji and Tonga

Beek

Drysdale

Kusen

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The support of management and program staff and the availability of surge capacity and technical guidance was widely appreciated. While this, together with the formalisation of partnerships and regular meetings and training are important activities to ensure the currency of coordination efforts in readiness for activation, so is the institutionalisation of SRHiE in national policy and accountability mechanisms [ 31 ]. National policies that highlight SRHiE as a priority and embed the MISP into disaster risk reduction (DRR) planning with attached investment and key performance indicators support the delivery of essential services in emergencies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preparing for and responding to sexual and reproductive health in disaster settings: evidence from Fiji and Tonga

Beek

Drysdale²,

Kusen³

et al. 2021

Reprod Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Pacific Island countries are vulnerable to disasters, including cyclones and earthquakes. Disaster preparedness is key to a well-coordinated response to preventing sexual violence and assisting survivors, reducing the transmission of HIV and other STIs, and preventing excess maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to identify the capacity development activities undertaken as part of the SPRINT program in Fiji and Tonga and how these enabled the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) response to Tropical Cyclones Winston and Gita. Methods This descriptive qualitative study was informed by a framework designed to assess public health emergency response capacity across various levels (systems, organisational, and individual) and two phases of the disaster management cycle (preparedness and response). Eight key informants were recruited purposively to include diverse individuals from relevant organisations and interviewed by telephone, Zoom, Skype and email. Template analysis was used to examine the data. Findings Differences in the country contexts were highlighted. The existing program of training in Tonga, investment from the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) Humanitarian Hub, the status of the Tonga Family Health Association as the key player in the delivery of SRH, together with its long experience of delivering contract work in short time-frames and strong relationship with the Ministry of Health (MoH) facilitated a relatively smooth and rapid response. In contrast, there had been limited capacity development work in Fiji prior to Winston, requiring training to be rapidly delivered during the immediate response to the cyclone with the support of surge staff from IPPF. In Fiji, the response was initially hampered by a lack of clarity concerning stakeholder roles and coordination, but linkages were quickly built to enable a response. Participants highlighted the importance of personal relationships, individuals’ and organisations' motivation to respond, and strong rapport with the community to deliver SRH. Discussion This study highlights the need for comprehensive activities at multiple levels within a country and across the Pacific region to build capacity for a SRH response. While the SPRINT initiative has been implemented across several regions to improve organisational and national capacity preparedness, training for communities can be strengthened. This research outlines the importance of formalising partnerships and regular meetings and training to ensure the currency of coordination efforts in readiness for activation. However, work is needed to further institutionalise SRH in emergencies in national policy and accountability mechanisms.

show abstract

“…There are some health concerns of women and infants in disasters (36). Unplanned pregnancy, preventable maternal and infant death are main concerns in this issue (37). Limited access to reproductive services may cause unplanned pregnancy.…”

Section: Availability and Accessibility Of Reproductive Health Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Human rights: Some studies mentioned that women in IDP camps suffer diminished human rights and dignity (20). This is because of women lack knowledge about their rights, inadequate national laws and absence of female officers in the disaster area (37). National policy makers should protect vulnerable women and pay attention to the reproductive health needs, rights and dignity of IDPs (13).…”

Section: Availability and Accessibility Of Reproductive Health Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Humanitarian law, human right, and international criminal law are some examples of actions through increasing the women rights and dignity (42). Also, Sustainable Development Goals 3, 5 and 16 mentioned the rights of women (37). Social and cultural issues: Lack of household education is one of the main reproductive health management challenges of IDPs in disasters.…”

Section: Availability and Accessibility Of Reproductive Health Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Challenges of Reproductive Health Management in the Camps of Internally Displaced Persons: A Systematic Review

Shahmoradi

Mohammad

Jaafaripooyan

2021

Ethiop J Health Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BACKGROUND Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the camps face many reproductive health challenges. They should meet their needs timely to save their lives. This paper outlines a systematic review to discuss the challenges of reproductive health management in the camps of internally displaced persons.METHODS: For this research, electronic databases including PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Pro Quest, Google Scholar and Cochrane Library till January 1, 2020 were searched. A threestage screening process was used for the selection of literature due to PRISMA checklist. Finally, a thematic synthesis approach was applied to analyze the data.RESULTS: In total, 133 articles were identified; 11 articles met the inclusion criteria for entering the process of final analysis. The findings were demonstrated in six main categories of availability and accessibility of reproductive health services, sexual and gender-based issues, human rights, social and cultural issues, coordination and collaboration, and mental health issues. The remarkable result of this study highlighted that the main challenges are lack of access to health services, violence against women and lack of household education.CONCLUSION: Results of this systematic review present valuable advice for policy makers and managers to prepare and respond effectively and timely to reproductive health challenges of internally displaces persons. Disaster preparedness plans and contingency plans for maintaining and developing reproductive health in IDPs camps are recommended.

show abstract

Accountability strategies for sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights in humanitarian settings: a scoping review

Cited by 17 publications

References 49 publications

Preparing for and Responding to Sexual and Reproductive Health in Disaster Settings: Evidence From Fiji and Tonga

Preparing for and Responding to Sexual and Reproductive Health in Disaster Settings: Evidence From Fiji and Tonga

Preparing for and responding to sexual and reproductive health in disaster settings: evidence from Fiji and Tonga

Challenges of Reproductive Health Management in the Camps of Internally Displaced Persons: A Systematic Review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About