Maternal and child health (MCH) has been a global priority for many decades and is an essential public health service. Ensuring seamless delivery is vital for desirable MCH outcomes. This systematic review outlined the challenges in accessing and continuing MCH services during public health emergencies—pandemics and disasters. A comprehensive search approach was built based on keywords and MeSH terms relevant to ‘MCH services’ and ‘pandemics/disasters’. The online repositories Medline, CINAHL, Psyc INFO, and Epistemonikos were searched for studies. We included twenty studies—seven were on the Ebola outbreak, two on the Zika virus, five related to COVID-19, five on disasters, and one related to conflict situations. The findings indicate the potential impact of emergencies on MCH services. Low utilization and access to services have been described as common challenges. The unavailability of personal safety equipment and fear of infection were primary factors that affected service delivery. The available evidence, though limited, indicates the significant effect of disasters and pandemics on MCH. However, more primary in-depth studies are needed to understand better the overall impact of emergencies, especially the COVID-19 pandemic, on MCH. Our synthesis offers valuable insights to policymakers on ensuring the uninterrupted provision of MCH services during an emergency.

Background: According to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 report, up to 1.5 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) are lost due to soil-transmitted helminths (STHs), and 5.9 million people are at risk of acquiring STHs. Regions with the highest prevalence of STH infections include Sub-Saharan Africa, China, South America, and Asia. While there are numerous fragmented studies on STH, comprehensive information on the prevalence and geographic distribution of different species, as well as their regional variations in the context of STHs is limited. The present systematic review and meta-analysis study attempts to provide a summary of the prevalence, geographical variation, and determinants of STHs among schoolchildren aged 5 to 18 years.Methods: An extensive literature search was carried out using PubMed, Embase, Cinhal, and Psychinfo for studies published between 1999 and 2022 that reported the rate of STH infection in school-going children aged 5–18 years. A random effects model was employed in this meta-analysis due to expected heterogeneity. Subgroup analysis was carried out based on sex and STH species because of expected geographical variation.Results: A total of 19,725 of the 49,630 children examined were infected with STH, yielding an overall pooled prevalence of 37.16% (95% CI: 29.74–44.89). The prevalence was highest in the Western Pacific region at 50.41% (95% CI: 33.74–67.04) followed by Europe at 39.74% (95% CI: 20.40–61.0) and Africa at 37.10% (95% CI: 26.84–47.95). Ascaris lumbricoides was found to be the most prevalent helminth with a prevalence of 24.07% (95% CI: 17.07–31.83).Conclusion: The Western Pacific region is classified as a High-risk Zone (HRZ), while Southeast Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Eastern Mediterranean are classified as moderate-risk zones (MRZs). We found a 12% reduction in the pooled prevalence of STH infection from 1999 to 2012. Ascaris lumbricoides was the predominant species among schoolchildren. Mass Drug Administration (MDA) of Albendazole tablets and improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practices are effective in controlling and preventing STH. Ensuring their implementation and access is crucial to addressing the problem.Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/#loginpage, CRD42022333341.

Community health workers (CHW) faced increased challenges in delivering maternal and child health services during the current COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to routine services, they were also engaged in pandemic management. In view of a dearth of evidence, the current study explores the challenges faced by CHWs while rendering maternal and child health services. A qualitative study through in-depth interviews (IDI) and focus group discussions (FGD) in six districts of Odisha was conducted from February to April 2021. Data were analyzed using MAXQDA software. Personal-level challenges, like lack of family support, stress, and fear of contracting COVID-19; facility-level challenges, like transportation problems and inadequate personal protective measures; and community-level challenges, like stigma, resistance, and lack of community support were major hindrances in provisioning routine MCH services. Prevailing myths and misconceptions concerning COVID-19 were factors behind stigma and resistance. Sharing experiences with family, practicing yoga and pranayam, engaging ambulance bikes, financial assistance to mothers, counseling people, and involving community leaders were some effective strategies to address these challenges. Development and implementation of appropriate strategy guidelines for addressing the challenges of frontline warriors will improve their work performance and achieve uninterrupted MCH services during pandemics or similar health emergencies.

Newly emerging or re-emerging infections are posing continuous threat to both public health system and clinical care globally. The emergence of infections especially caused by arboviruses can be linked to several mechanisms which include geographical expansion linked to human development and transportation, global warming, enhanced transmission in peridomestic area and close proximity of human habitations to domestic as well as wild animals. The co-circulation of Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika is a matter of public health priority due to the fact that they are transmitted by the same vector as well as increase in the number of reported cases of severe dengue, post-chikungunya chronic joint disease and microcephaly related to Zika virus disease. The study was designed to estimate the prevalence of these arboviral infections in Odisha. About 5198 cases presenting with common clinical symptoms of fever, arthralgia, headache, myalgia and malaise were screened during 2016–2019. A total of 42.2% patients tested positive for dengue NS1 antigen (n = 4154), 30.2% for dengue IgM (n = 2161) and 14.3% for chikungunya IgM (n = 1816). A total of 1684 samples were subjected to Zika RT-PCR and none was tested positive. Peak in the numbers of dengue/ chikungunya cases was evident in the post-monsoon months of July – October. Circulation of all four serotypes of dengue i.e. DEN 1, 2, 3, and 4 was noticed in the state. Molecular investigation of suspected Chik cases in early phases showed circulation of Eastern Central Southern African genotype (E1:226A). There is dearth of knowledge about disease severity during arbovirus co-infections and importance of adequate management of patients at an early stage residing in risk areas. It is the first study in Odisha to study the pattern and status of these three arboviral diseases Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika. The outcome of this study will help in focusing and improvement of existing surveillance systems and vector control tools, as well as on the development of suitable antiviral agents and formulating candidate vaccine.

Context: Partograph is a simple, effective and low-cost intrapartum monitoring tool that helps in early identification of complications if any and helps in prompt intervention to save the life of the mother and the newborn. There is limited study about its usage and challenges in plotting from India particularly Odisha. Aim: To determine the usage of partograph and explore the issues/challenges in its plotting at various levels of health facilities Settings and Design: A cross-sectional study was carried out from April to June 2018 in ten different public health facilities from two tribal districts of Odisha, India. Materials and Methods: Quantitative information from 1552 mothers using pre-tested epi-info questionnaire tool and qualitative information through 22 in-depth interviews among health care providers. Statistical Analysis Used: Quantitative data using Ms Excel 10 and IBM SPSS ver. 22 and qualitative data using the inductive content analysis method. Results: Partograph plotting was found in 48.7% (adherence) while its completeness was only 1.03%. Partograph plotting was significantly better at CHCs compared to DHH and SDH (P = 0.000). No significant association of partograph adherence was observed with the birth outcome, complications, referral status and type of delivery. Though majority health care providers knew the importance of the partograph, hardly they use it. The main reasons were increased workload, shortage of staff, cases arriving at a later stage and lack of monitoring from a higher level. Conclusions: On job training on partograph, regular monitoring and strict policy will improve the adherence and completeness in partograph plotting.