Women, war, and reproductive health in developing countries

[Sexual and reproductive health in women victims of the armed conflict]

OBJETIVE

Show the main conditions in sexual and reproductive health in women victims of the conflicts and armed post-conflicts.

METHODOLOGY

An scoping systematic review was conducted, about literature in English, Spanish, and Portuguese languages, between 2000 to the present, in PubMED, EMBASE, Google Scholar, LILACS, IBECS, SciELO and was consulted key informants.

RESULTS

It was found in the international ambit, the main affectation identified referred to sexual violence, risk factors were found that perpetuate it, such as the family environment, access to education, poor infrastructure of health services among others. Other important effects derive from an increase in the rate of pregnancies and marriages. In Colombia the situation is similar: the areas with the greatest impact due to conflict have a higher fertility rate, poor access to obstetric care, and poor knowledge of STIs.

CONCLUSION

Access to sexual health services in the conflict, for disease prevention, and the right to sexual and reproductive health must be ensured.

A systematic review of monitoring and evaluation indicators for sexual and reproductive health in humanitarian settings

OBJECTIVE

To conduct a comprehensive mapping of published indicators for monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and outcomes in humanitarian settings.

METHODS

A systematic search of the peer-reviewed and grey literature published between January 2008 and May 2018 was conducted to identify all references describing indicator sets for M&E of SRH services and outcomes in humanitarian settings. The databases MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Global Health, as well as 85 websites of relevant organizations involved in humanitarian response were searched. Characteristics of identified indicator sets and data from individual indicators was extracted.

FINDINGS

Of 3278 records identified, 20 met the review's inclusion criteria and 9 existing indicator sets were identified. A total of 179 relevant indicators were included in the mapping, and removal of duplicates yielded 132 unique indicators. Twenty-seven percent fell within the maternal health domain, followed by the HIV/AIDS domain (26%) and the gender-based violence domain (23%). The distribution of indicators by type (process/output, outcome, impact) was balanced overall but varied substantially across domains. The most commonly used data collection platforms were facility-based systems or population-based surveys. Domains covered and indicator definitions were inconsistent across indicator sets.

CONCLUSION

Results demonstrate the need to standardize data collection efforts for M&E of SRH services and outcomes in humanitarian settings and to critically appraise the extent to which different domains should be covered. A core list of indicators is essential for assessing response status over time as well as across countries.

Getting to intent: Are social norms influencing intentions to use modern contraception in the DRC?

Meeting the reproductive health needs of women in post-conflict settings is a global health priority. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, social norms perpetuate gender-based violence and contribute to low contraceptive use and high fertility. The Masculinité, Famille, et Foi (MFF) intervention is working with communities in Kinshasa to create normative environments supportive of modern contraception access and use. Our analysis uses survey data collected from 900 men and women in 17 community groups prior to the MFF intervention. We aimed to measure the extent to which social norms influence intentions to use modern contraception. Using multiple items to assess social norms and reference groups related to family planning and gender equity, we identified four distinct social norms constructs through factor analysis. Through structural equation modeling, we found that social norms influence intentions to use modern contraception overall, but that normative influence varies by gender.