Description
Poster presentation sexual and reproductive health and rights
Background: Adolescents around the world are known to engage in sexual activity, and this proportion tends to rise gradually from the middle to the late stage of adolescence. The occurrence of early sexual initiation among female youth in sub-Saharan Africa was reported at 46.39%. The increasing number of teenage pregnancies in Rwanda indicates that adolescents are not using correctly...
Background: Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in Uganda bear a significant HIV burden, accounting for 25% of new infections. Despite improved HIV testing services, AGYW in rural areas face barriers to facility-based testing due to stigma, physical access barriers, and confidentiality concerns. This study assessed the acceptability, appropriateness, feasibility and preferences of...
Background: To tackle the issue of insufficient information and services related to reproductive health services, Rwanda, like many other low and middle-income countries, has established Youth Friendly Health Services Centers (YFHS) dedicated to providing reproductive health services to adolescents and young people. However, these centers are not meeting the adolescents’ needs. Moreover,...
Background: Maternal health is key to creating healthy, sustainable communities. Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rate of maternal/infant mortality.1 Facility birth with a skilled birth attendant decreases mortality and morbidity,2 However, the majority of births in sub-Saharan Africa still occur outside of a facility without a trained health worker.2 Evidence suggests increasing community...
Background: One in three women experience poor person-centered maternity care (PCMC) during childbirth, with adolescents disproportionately affected. However, limited evidence exists on adolescents’ experiences of care during childbirth and how these experiences influence future childbearing intentions, including decisions to give birth again, return to the same facility, or recommend it to...
Introduction
Pregnant and breastfeeding women in sub-Saharan Africa are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS, with rates that are consistent with the World Health Organization’s definition of populations at substantial risk. In a systematic review and meta-analysis, incidence rates were 3.8/100 person years during pregnancy and postpartum. About 7.6% of the pediatric burden of HIV in...
Background: Urinary Incontinence (UI) affects women globally, with prevalence rates of 20-50% across ages. It causes discomfort, stigma, and financial burdens, influenced by genetics, age, childbirth, and chronic conditions. Recent data shows that the prevalence of UI is 42% in Rwanda, often underreported due to stigma. Treatments include medication, surgery, pelvic floor muscle training, and...
Background
Breast ironing, a form of traditional body modification involving the massaging or pressing of developing breasts, is intended to delay the onset of perceived sexual maturity and deter early sexual activity. It affects an estimated 3.8 million girls globally, particularly in the West and Central Africa, including Cameroon, Ghana, and Nigeria. Similarly, Although underreported,...
Author: Auma Anna Grace, Apili Felister, Madira Emmanuel, Izaruku Ronald
Affiliation: Lira University, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery
Abstract
Introduction: The largest contributor to maternal mortality and Morbidity in Uganda is the third delay, women spend about 90 minutes waiting time before the initial assessment, WHO recommends 10 minutes. A significant number of...
Background: Early sexual debut and early marriage are often linked to traditional initiation ceremonies that prepare adolescent girls for adulthood despite ongoing campaigns. These ceremonies commonly involve sex education focused on pleasing a partner, which may encourage early sexual activity among teenagers. Given the high risks of early pregnancy, limited contraceptive access, and...
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) remains a major public health challenge. Kenya has the world’s 7th-largest HIV burden, with 1.3 million people living with HIV and approximately 34 daily cases-67% contributed by women.
HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (HIVPrEP), endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2015, is an effective prevention method for those at substantial risk, i.e.,...
Introduction: People with disabilities in Ethiopia experience socioeconomic disadvantages and obtain limited information and services related to reproductive and sexual health. There is currently little information about access to information regarding the current abortion law among disabled people in Ethiopia. This study evaluated awareness and attitudes of disabled reproductive age women...
Background
Cervical cancer (CaCx) is a significant public health issue, especially in low-resource settings like Uganda, where it remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women. Cervical cancer screening plays a vital role in early detection and prevention. Yet, the knowledge and attitude of women, particularly university students and staff, towards screening practices is not...
Abstract
Background: The neonatal period, the first 28 days of life, is critical for both the newborn and the parents, especially mothers, as they transition into parenthood. Worldwide, mothers with babies in NICU confront stressful experiences owing to the treatments, conditions, and separation influencing their thoughts, state of mind, relationships, and interactions with their babies. In...
Background
Major depression (MD) during pregnancy complicates maternal and neonatal outcomes. Despite its significant impact, there is a lack of evidence on the prevalence and associated factors of MD among pregnant women in Uganda. We assessed the magnitude and factors associated with MD among pregnant women attending antenatal care (ANC) at a large teaching hospital in Northern...
Introduction: Teenage pregnancy is a major public health problem with huge consequences. This calls for multi-stakeholders involved in issues of teenagers' sexual and reproductive health to achieve the SDG target of 2030. This systematic review aimed to estimate the prevalence of teenage pregnancy and its associated factors in Uganda. Methods: After prospective registration (PROSPERO...
Background: Teenage pregnancy is defined as a pregnancy in a girl who is 13-19 years of age. Globally, 21 million pregnancies occur annually among adolescents aged 15–19 years, with half unintended, leading to an estimated 12 million births. Complications resulting from these pregnancies and childbirth are among the leading causes of death for girls aged 15–19 years. Sub-Saharan Africa...
Background
Gender-based violence (GBV) against women is a global health issue, affecting one in three women worldwide. Exposure to GBV during pregnancy poses significant health risks to the mother and her foetus, leading to various complications. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, types, and factors associated with GBV among pregnant women in Northern Uganda.
Methods
A...
Background: Repeat teenage pregnancy is a global issue affecting low, middle-, and high-income
countries, with significant risks for both the mother and child. Despite the high prevalence of repeat
teenage pregnancy in refugee or internally displaced persons camps, there is limited data on the
phenomena, particularly among teenage mothers residing in refugee settlements. We determined...
Background: Women of reproductive age in Zambia experience significant barriers to accessing LARC and HIV test-and-treat services due to stigma and poor continuity of care. These challenges often contribute to mental health difficulties, further affecting health-seeking behaviours and decision-making. Despite high HIV prevalence of 14.9% and over 50% rising demand for LARC in 2022, service...
Background
Access to contraceptive services remains a critical factor in supporting female students’ educational progress and overall well-being. In Uganda, female university students increasingly face challenges such as unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and many drop out unnoticed. Enhancing access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services is essential to safeguarding...
Background: Low birth weight (LBW) babies account for over 80% of global neonatal deaths, with the highest burden in Africa and South Asia. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a low-cost, effective intervention for the survival of LBW infants. We assessed trends and spatial distribution of LBW babies and their KMC initiation in Uganda, from 2015–2023.
Methods: We abstracted data on low birth weight...
Abstract:
The impact of education on knowledge and attitudes regarding abortion among Ugandan adolescents.
Name: Bukenya Jonathan
work place: Uganda cancer institute.
Background
Adolescents in Uganda face significant challenges related to reproductive health, with limited access to accurate information about abortion. Education plays a critical role in shaping adolescents' knowledge...
The purpose of this study was to understand the tension between Sexuality Education (SE) policy actors and their expressed agenda of discourse in the case of Ethiopia and Uganda. The SE is a controversial subject and even more contentious when it involves adolescents. It is rather complex in the context where discussing sexuality issues are socio-culturally tabooed and considered adult...
Background
A recent audit revealed a quite low uptake of informed consent (IC) and debriefing for caesarean section (CS) in the West Region of Cameroon. Adopting an explanatory approach this study explored CS providers’ views on routine practices of IC and D.
Methods
From March to August 2024 we purposively included 69 CS providers across 20 hospitals in 9 health districts in the West...
Background
Inadequate communication before caesarean section (CS) and thereafter may feed the widespread fear and reluctance toward that lifesaving procedure in the West Region of Cameroon. To get insights into the situation on the ground this study explored practices of informed consent and debriefing for caesarean section (CS).
Methods
Uptake of consent and debriefing for CS is quite...
Background
Responsiveness of health services to users’ needs is a major determinant of their acceptability and uptake. In Cameroon (Central Africa), women’s reluctance and fear of caesarean section (CS) undermines the impact of that live-saving and health-preserving intervention. This study explored women’s needs for person-centered informed consent (IC) and debriefing for caesarean section...
Abstract
Background: The Moyo device is an easy-to-use device that allows continuous electronic fetal heart rate monitoring (FHRM). We explored the acceptability of using the Moyo device for continuous intrapartum FHRM in Eastern Uganda.
Methods: Between November 2023 and August 2024, we introduced the Moyo device for continuous intrapartum FHRM among mothers with high-risk pregnancies at...
Background:
Sexual education is a critical component of adolescent development and public health. In Cameroon, despite the growing awareness of its importance, sexual education remains poorly institutionalized, inconsistently delivered, and often marginalized in formal curricula. This study aimed to assess both the implementation and the perception of sexual education in secondary schools in...
Background:
HIV Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective HIV prevention strategy, especially for individuals at heightened risk. In 2016, Zambia launched PrEP as a major HIV prevention strategy and set up a National PrEP Task Force to oversee the creation and promotion of policy. Despite enacting the policy, its uptake remains limited, particularly among women seeking abortion...
Background
Literature on the barriers and facilitators of mental health services for children and adolescents in sub-Saharan countries like Uganda is not readily available. This likely highlight the need to a study like ours. Our aim was to explore health worker’s perspectives on the barriers and facilitators of the provision of mental health services to children and adolescents with...
Background: -
Since 2009, WHO has recommended hepatitis B birth dose vaccination (HepB-BD), preferably within 24 hours of birth (timely HepB-BD, TBD) to prevent mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HBV (WHO, 2020).However, there is lack of convincing data for this implementation and only 13 countries in Africa have included universal HepB-BD vaccination in their national strategy. Studies...
Enhancing Family Planning Uptake through an Integrated Maternal and Newborn Care One-Stop Center: Experience from a Tertiary Hospital in Northern Uganda
Grace Lanyero1, Jimmyy Opee2
1Gulu regional referral hospital, P.O.BOX 1, Gulu-Uganda, 2Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, P.O.BOX 166, Gulu-Uganda
Background: Family planning (FP)...
Background
Ethiopia’s youth, comprising 34.7% of its 135 million population, face significant barriers to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, with utilization rates ranging from only 16.9 – 26.7%. These challenges are mainly due to stigma, cultural taboos, and limited youth-friendly care, contributing to high rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections....
Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) remains a critical public health issue in Cameroon, particularly in rural areas like the Obala district, where maternal morbidity and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) rates are concerned. Despite national efforts, gaps in knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) hinder access to essential services. This study aimed to assess the KAP of women of...
Background: Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) accounts for about one-third of all institutional maternal deaths in Uganda. Evidence has shown improved maternal outcomes with better readiness and preparedness for PPH management. We determined the level of readiness of health facilities and knowledge of health care workers (HCWs) to manage PPH among public facilities in Kampala metropolitan areas,...
Background: BabySaver and NeoBeat devices have the potential to enable bedside neonatal resuscitation, with an intact cord in the presence of the mother. We assessed the feasibility and acceptability of using them together for neonatal resuscitation in a low-resource setting.
Methods: This was a mixed methods study conducted over a period of 11 months at Mbale Hospital in Uganda. We enrolled...
Background
The burden of HIV remains disproportionally high among young women. This is often coupled with nondisclosure of HIV status partly due to the delayed knowledge of self HIV status which affects entry into HIV prevention, care and treatment. HIV self-testing which provides instant knowledge of HIV status is being promoted to enable early disclosure. However, previous studies about...
Background:
In 2020, in sub-Saharan Africa, 25% of new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections occurred among young women aged 15-24 years. Specifically, in Uganda, the HIV prevalence is three times higher among young women aged 15-24 years at 2.9% compared to 0.8% among their male counterparts. HIV status disclosure is a gateway to the preventive health services. We set out to...
Background: Adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) problems such as early unintended pregnancies, child marriages, and gender-based violence, remain a public health threat particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2014, Zambia implemented comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) to equip young people with the knowledge and skills critical in addressing SRHR challenges. The...
Zambia has ratified many conventions with regard to sexual reproductive health amongst them is provision of comprehensive abortion care services. The Zambia 1972 Termination of Pregnancy Act is considered one of the most liberal in the world but this has not translated into service provision. Limited access, inadequate trained providers and lack of awareness on safe abortion services has...
The 2025 World Health Day report by the World Health Organization (WHO) highlighted progress and persistent maternal and neonatal health disparities. While global maternal and neonatal mortality rates have declined significantly over the last two decades, these gains remain inequitably distributed, with Sub-Saharan Africa still bearing a disproportionate burden of as high as 70% and 40% of...
Background: Sexuality refers to the set of biological, physiological, morphological and psychological conditions that characterize the male and female sexes. According to the World Health Organization, adolescence is a period between 10-19 years old. It is characterized by major transformations of the organism associated with the development of primary and secondary sexual characteristics,...
Background
Out-of-school adolescents and youth in sub-Saharan Africa represent a structurally excluded demographic with limited access to quality sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services. Entrenched socio-cultural norms, gender inequities, financial dependency, and weak community–facility linkages amplify their vulnerability to unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortion, and...
Background
Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) among adolescents and young people in Sub-Saharan Africa is characterized by multifaceted inequities, including poor service coverage, fragmented health systems, and restrictive socio-cultural norms. High burdens of unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and sexually transmitted infections persist in this demographic, yet SRH interventions...
Positioning medical students as reproductive justice advocates: A reproductive justice training for clinical year medical students at Kabale University.
Isagara Peter1, 2, 3, Namujuzi Angella1, 2, Nahumuza Davis1, 2, 3
1Kabale University, School of Medicine, Uganda
2Medical Students for Choice
3Dynamic Doctors...
Abstract
Background
Postpartum depression is a prevalent and severe mental health condition marked by episodes of major depression occurring during pregnancy and after childbirth. Postpartum depression a serious psychiatric disorder and one of the most common complications of childbirth that negatively impacts the mother
Objective
We aimed to assess the prevalence and associated factors...
1Bong Wobenso Jessica Grace, 123Fouedjio Jeanne Hortence
1Faculty of Médicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the University of Dschang, Cameroon
2Gynecology and Obstetrics Department of the Central Hospital of Yaoundé, Cameroon
3Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé 1, Cameroon
Correspondence: Bong Wobenso Jessica...
Introduction; Women are still dying because of failure to identify risk, retain risk and response to risk (IRR). Many pregnant women and babies have interfaced with the health system but their risk factors are not identified or are identified but not followed up only to present as emergencies at a later date ending up with bad outcomes. High impact interventions are required to reduce maternal...
OBJECTIVE: Research capacity in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is increasingly recognized as a pivotal force for informed policy-making and the advancement of public health. This study investigates the experiences of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) researchers in Cameroon who were awarded competitive seed research grants as part of a 2-year research training program...
Background: Obstetric ultrasound scans are essential for prenatal care, but the evidence of their uptake is still low in Low and Middle income countries (Kim et al., 2018). Ultrasound scans enable early detection of potential complications and improving maternal and fetal health outcomes(Lagrone et al., 2012). Obstetric ultrasonography is important in determining the presence and location of...
Background:
Adolescent girls and young women living with HIV (AGYWLHIV) in Uganda face the dual challenge of preventing HIV transmission to male partners and unintended pregnancies. Male condom use requires male partner’s cooperation which is often difficult for the AGYWLHIV to negotiate. Female-controlled dual protection methods (FCDPM) which involves combining the female condoms with...
Background: The utilization of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services among African university students is low, between 27% and 49%. Factors affecting this include awareness of services, accessibility barriers, and socio-demographic influences. Studies indicate that hesitance to fully utilize SRH services has resulted in unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and...
Background
Sexual and reproductive health is a critical aspect for young male adults’ well being but often not prioritized. Young male adults have considerable sexual and reproductive health needs yet many are not aware of the SRH services available hence increased risk of having un protected sexual intercourse leading to increased unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections. High...
