The Implications of Shortages of Health Professionals for Maternal Health in Sub-Saharan Africa

Understanding job satisfaction amongst mid-level cadres in Malawi: the contribution of organisational justice

“…17,18 There is concern that quality of care will suffer if they are not properly supported and motivated. 16,[18][19][20][21] One concept that connects how employees are treated with motivation and job satisfaction is that of organisational justice, 22 which generally encompasses three components: distributive justice, procedural justice and interactional justice. 23 Distributive justice refers to how fairly employees feel they are treated (in comparison to others) with regards to the distribution of resources and outcomes.…”

Emergency Obstetric Kits: Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Health Care Providers

“…Thus, there are real problems with the availability of human resources for obstetric care and those who are in the facilities are not regularly recycled [22]. In a context where there is a shortage of skilled personnel with work overload, it would be difficult to obtain an appreciable quality of maternal care [23]. This would be the case in our environment where the implementation of the EOKs might have led to an increase in the number of deliveries.…”

Seizing the Big Missed Opportunity: Linking HIV and Maternity Care Services in Sub-Saharan Africa

“…Given staff shortages in maternal health care in sub-Saharan Africa, 54 additional finance for HIV programming represents an important opportunity to draw staff back to the public sector while linking services. For example, in Kenya, the government and the International Monetary Fund have agreed that the Clinton Foundation, the Global Fund and PEPFAR fund the salaries of over 2,000 additional health workers for a limited period, after which the government will take over.…”

“…For example, Pathfinder International's innovative programme with nearly 200 clinics in Kenya improved basic antenatal care services and infrastructure alongside introducing PMTCT. 54,55 The number of pregnant women attending antenatal care has increased, with higher rates of acceptance of HIV counselling and testing, and increased antiretroviral uptake by mothers and babies. Key components included a sensitisation campaign (for providers, traditional birth attendants and community members), training of antenatal service providers in PMTCT and counselling skills, upgrading facilities to improve privacy, and developing two-way referral systems between community health workers and health facilities to improve follow-up.…”