The Relationship between Women's Self-Reported Experiences and Observed Occurrence of Mistreatment during Childbirth: A Linked Analysis in Ghana, Guinea, and Nigeria

There has been substantial progress in developing approaches to measure mistreatment of women during childbirth; however, less is known about the trade-offs between different approaches to inform future measurement. This is a comparative analysis of data between labour observations and a community-based survey with women in Ghana, Guinea, and Nigeria.

Individual and Facility-Level Factors That Affect Quality of Care: Self-Reported Provision of Respectful Care among Providers in Malawi

Over the past decade, there has been increased attention on disrespect and abuse in childbirth and development of interventions to improve women's experiences. However, most studies focus on women's perspectives. The nature of disrespect and abuse is complex, and health care professionals often work in suboptimal and high-stress conditions without routine training and support to effectively care for patients. We describe self-reported provision of respectful maternity care (RMC) among providers and identify areas for workforce support.

Women's Experience of Birth Companions and Respectful Maternity Care in Malawi

In Malawi, a family member or friend escorts women to a health facility for childbirth. These "guardians" or companions generally provide food, wash clothes, and support woman during labour/childbirth. However, systematic use of birth companions (BCs) attending women throughout labour and delivery is fragmented and not routine, even though it is Ministry of Health policy. We examine women's experiences, including respectful maternity care (RMC), following the introduction of job aids/tools to formalize BCs.

Interventions Co-designed by Providers and Clients for Improving Their Therapeutic Relationships in Maternal and Child Health Care in Rural Tanzania

Evidence indicates that clients' dissatisfaction with providers' competencies within maternal and child health (MCH) continues to impact trust in formal health care systems, service uptake, continuity with care, and MCH outcomes. Existing interventions have failed to address all the complexities of provider-client relationships, necessitating targeted, contextualized, and innovative solutions that place providers and clients at the forefront as agents of change in optimizing intervention design and implementation. The study aimed at engaging providers and MCH clients to co-design an intervention package (prototype) for improving nurse-client relationships using a human-centered design (HCD) approach.