Dear colleagues,

Holistic approaches have demonstrated effectiveness among first-time mothers (FTMs), who are less likely than older women to access reproductive, maternal, and newborn health (RMNH) services in many contexts, and are most likely to have closely-spaced second pregnancies. But such complex approaches have proven challenging to sustainably scale-up. Could reaching FTMs through streamlined, scalable “enhancements” to existing government platforms prove effective?

In short, yes. We are pleased to share new resources from the Connect project, which aims to develop scalable approaches to increase FTMs’ PPFP use and coverage, timing, and quality of postnatal care. Two new technical briefs detail findings from small-scale rapid surveys assessing the effectiveness, acceptability and feasibility of the enhancements, to identify needed refinements, and to inform scale-up plans in Bangladesh and Tanzania. Findings from both countries indicated that the light-touch enhancements showed potential to improve outcomes and meet FTMs’ needs, despite design trade-offs for scalability. Please also read this blog post.

For more resources and information on the Connect project, please visit our page.

Best,

Meroji Sebany

ADVISOR, ADOLESCENT SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

899 North Capitol St NW, Washington, DC 20002

msebany@...

Skype: Meroji_hs