Maternal, Sexual and Reproductive Health in Marginalised Areas: Renewing Community Involvement Strategies beyond the Worst of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Murewanhema, Grant; Musuka, Godfrey; Gwanzura, Chipo; Makurumidze, Richard; Chitungo, Itai; Chimene, Munashe; Tungwarara, Nigel; Dzinamarira, Tafadzwa; Madziyire, Mugove Gerald

doi:10.3390/ijerph19063431

Cited by 10 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…This can result in the improved provision of RMNCH services, which may be able to better withstand future public health emergencies. 46 This is because services will be provided to people in areas where they reside and by people they trust. In Africa, this is important because significant proportions of the population live in rural areas.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, for marginalized communities, we propose the strengthening of community involvement in reproductive, maternal, neonatal, and child health (RMNCH) post‐COVID‐19. This can result in the improved provision of RMNCH services, which may be able to better withstand future public health emergencies 46 . This is because services will be provided to people in areas where they reside and by people they trust.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services insub‐SaharanAfrica during theCOVID‐19 pandemic: A rapid review

Murewanhema

Mpabuka

Moyo

et al. 2023

Birth

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Control measures for the COVID‐19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to health care delivery. Some countries in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) stopped the provision of essential health care except for those services that were deemed emergencies or life‐threatening. A rapid review was conducted on March 18, 2022, on the accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services in sub‐Saharan Africa during the COVID‐19 pandemic. PubMed, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, and the World Health Organization library databases were searched for relevant studies. A modified Population, Intervention, Control, and Outcomes (PICO) framework informed the development of the search strategy. The review included studies conducted within Africa that described the availability, access, and utilization of antenatal services during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Eighteen studies met the inclusion criteria. This review revealed a reduction in access to ANC services, an increase in the number of home deliveries, and a reduction in the number of women attending ANC visits during the COVID‐19 pandemic. A decrease in ANC service utilization was reported in some studies in the review. Barriers to ANC access and utilization during the COVID‐19 pandemic included movement restrictions, limited transport access, fear of contracting COVID‐19 at the health facilities, and facility barriers. The use of telemedicine needs to be improved in African countries to allow for the continued provision of health services during pandemics. In addition, there should strengthening of community involvement in the provision of maternal health services post‐COVID‐19 so that services may be able to better withstand future public health emergencies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services insub‐SaharanAfrica during theCOVID‐19 pandemic: A rapid review

Murewanhema

Mpabuka

Moyo

et al. 2023

Birth

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“…reproductive health being neglected, as the primary focus was shifted to COVID-19 containment and mitigation. 5 Evidence from previous humanitarian crises has shown the aggravated vulnerability of women to adverse sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes. 6 This is evident in the Ebola virus disease outbreaks in West Africa, where significant rises in maternal mortality were recorded as women failed to timeously and adequately access these services.…”

Section: Read Onlinementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many organisations that support HIV prevention and treatment programmes, alongside mainstream governments, shifted their priorities, responses and resources to COVID-19 responses, resulting in certain areas of public health, such as maternal, sexual and reproductive health being neglected, as the primary focus was shifted to COVID-19 containment and mitigation. 5 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The HIV epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic: A double tragedy for sub-Saharan African women

Murewanhema

Musuka

Denhere

et al. 2022

Afr. j. prim. health care fam. med.

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After four decades of the HIV epidemic, women from sub-Saharan Africa remain at a differentially high risk of acquisition. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) statistics show that the majority of HIV infections occur in this population and region. Evidence from previous humanitarian crises demonstrated adverse maternal consequences as a result of neglect for the provision of essential maternal, sexual and reproductive health services. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has had a similar effect, including an additional risk of HIV acquisition amongst women in sub-Saharan Africa. The COVID-19 pandemic has aggravated the risk of sub-Saharan Africa women to HIV infection because of a multitude of factors including child marriages, teenage pregnancies, dropping out of school, increase in incidence of sexual and gender-based violence and reduced access to preventive and treatment services for HIV and sexually transmitted infections. These include provision of care for rape and sexual and gender-based violence victims and provision of pre-exposure and postexposure prophylaxis for HIV and other STIs. Failure to urgently restore and maintain robust HIV prevention and treatment during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic poses a risk of reversing the gains made over the years in reducing the incidence and morbidity from HIV amongst the population of sub-Saharan Africa women. There is need for an urgent and robust discourse to formulate effective interventions for protecting women and girls living in sub-Saharan Africa from an aggravated risk of HIV infection during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and other future humanitarian crises.

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“…MIDP often live at the intersection of multiple, coexisting vulnerabilities, including situational and personal factors (age, sex identity and expression, race, health status or disability) [19]. Health services should account for these vulnerabilities to appropriately respond to needs [11,20,21]. Lack of adequate service provision can result in increased HIV/STI incidence, morbidity and mortality, unaddressed GBV, and proliferation of potentially harmful practices such as female genital cutting [12 ▪ ,22–25]…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual health challenges in migrant, immigrant, and displaced populations 2022–2023

Panchenko,

Gabster,

Mayaud

et al. 2023

Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases

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Purpose of review This article reviews recently published research on sexual health challenges and HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among migrant, immigrant and displaced people (MIDP) worldwide. We aimed to identify current evidence gaps regarding HIV/STI epidemiology, sexual health needs and interventions. Recent findings Incidence and prevalence of HIV, hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and syphilis were higher among MIDP compared to host populations. However, research studies are limited in geographical distribution and few routine surveillance data are collected. Barriers to sexual health services use and participation in preventive interventions include low HIV/STI symptom knowledge and risk awareness, and intersectional experiences of stigma/discrimination. Better targeted promotion messages are needed to increase utilization of preventive sexual health interventions. Summary Access to, and use of, sexual health services and interventions are evident needs among MIDP. These needs are intertwined with social determinants of health, including cultural/language barriers and stigma. Effective interventions require involvement of multiple stakeholder groups, encouraging engagement and providing social protection. Promising directions for interventions and further research include developing sexual health supportive environments through peer-strategies and provider training in trauma-informed care.

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Maternal, Sexual and Reproductive Health in Marginalised Areas: Renewing Community Involvement Strategies beyond the Worst of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 10 publications

References 40 publications

Accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services insub‐SaharanAfrica during theCOVID‐19 pandemic: A rapid review

Accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services insub‐SaharanAfrica during theCOVID‐19 pandemic: A rapid review

The HIV epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic: A double tragedy for sub-Saharan African women

Sexual health challenges in migrant, immigrant, and displaced populations 2022–2023

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