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. 2024 Dec 10;7(6):98.
doi: 10.3390/mps7060098.

Impact of the Timed and Targeted Counselling Model on Maternal Health Continuum of Care Outcomes in Northern Uganda: Protocol of a Quasi-Experimental Study

Douglas Zibugu  1 , Jessica S Gubbels  1 , Christabellah Namugenyi  2 , John Bosco Asiimwe  2 , Sanne Gerards  1
Affiliations

Impact of the Timed and Targeted Counselling Model on Maternal Health Continuum of Care Outcomes in Northern Uganda: Protocol of a Quasi-Experimental Study

Douglas Zibugu et al. Methods Protoc. .

Abstract

Background: About 287,000 women died globally during their pregnancy journey in 2020, yet most of these deaths could have been prevented. In Uganda, studies show that using Community Health Worker (CHW) visits to households with a pregnant woman can support the prevention of adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. One such intervention is through the timed and targeted counselling (ttC) approach, where CHWs deliver tailored messages to mothers and their male caregivers at key stages of pregnancy. This study aims to evaluate the impact of the ttC approach on maternal health in Northern Uganda. The main outcomes include antenatal care attendance, advised place of delivery, and postnatal care visit.

Methods: We will employ a cross-sectional quasi-experimental design, with retrospective data to compare an intervention group (where ttC is implemented) to a control group (without intervention) using the propensity score matching (PSM) technique applying a 1:1 ratio with a caliper width of 20% of the standard deviation to estimate the average treatment effects. Adjusted odds ratios after generating matched pairs will be reported with 95% confidence intervals with Rosenbaum sensitivity analysis carried out for robustness.

Discussion: These findings can be used to modify the implementation of the ttC approach, thereby enhancing its efficiency and effectiveness.

Keywords: advised place of delivery; antenatal care; community health workers; postnatal care; timed and targeted counselling.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The conceptual framework for studying the impact of ttC on the maternal health continuum of care outcomes, adapted from Andersen’s model [25].
Figure 2
Figure 2
The flow recruitment diagram.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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    1. United Nations in Uganda Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being. [(accessed on 28 December 2022)]. Available online: https://uganda.un.org/en/sdgs/3.

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