Introduction: Focused antenatal care improves the survival and health of the mother as well as the babies. However, there are real challenges in keeping the subsequent antenatal care follow up in Ethiopia. Hence, the aim of this study was to assess missed antenatal care follow up and associated factors in the Eastern zone of Tigray. Methods: Hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted among systematically selected 548 women who came for de- livery services from March to April 2016. The data were collected using pre-tested and structured questionnaire through face to face exit interview. Data entry and analysis were made using EPI info version 7 software and SPSS version 20 respectively. Both binary and multiple logistic regression was performed. Results: This study revealed that 33.4% of participants were missing their Antenatal care follow-up. Having no formal ed- ucation [AOR=1.778 (1.102, 2.869)], attending primary education [AOR= 1.756 (1.040, 2.964)], self-employee [AOR=1.589 (1.030, 2.452)], government employee [AOR=0.503 (0.503, 0.953)], being unmarried [AOR=2.36 (1.11, 5.04)], didn’t in- formed about institutional delivery [AOR=3.34 (1.44, 7.78)], and travel distance more than two hours to hospital [AOR=1.93 (1.08, 3.44)] were factors significantly associated with missed Antenatal care follow-up. Conclusion: The proportion of missed antenatal care follow-up was lessened as compared to local and national evidences. Nevertheless, still a coordinated effort on tracking of pregnant women who missed their antenatal care appointment is re- quired by health policy implementers so as to increase the uptake of four complete visits. Keywords: Antenatal care follow-up; missed antenatal care; Tigray region; Ethiopia.

BackgroundActive management of third stage of labor is the most indispensable intervention to avert post-partum hemorrhage which is one of the typical causes of maternal morbidity and mortality. Therefore, the aim of the study was to assess practice and factors associated with active management of third stage of labor among obstetric care providers in referral hospitals.MethodsInstitution based cross-sectional study design was conducted from April 1–30, 2018. Simple random sampling technique was used to select a total of 356 obstetric care providers. Data were collected using pretested, structured and self-administered questionnaires. Data were entered to Epi data version 3.1 statistical software and exported to SPSS 23 for analysis. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify associated factors. P value <0.05 with 95% confidence level were used to declare statistical significance.ResultThis study revealed that practice of active management of third stage of labor was 61.2%. Age group of 20–30 years [AOR = 1.95 (95%CI;1.13–3.38)], Being male obstetric care provider [AOR = 1.74 (95%CI;1.03–2.94)], having work experience ≥2 years [AOR = 1.95(95%CI;1.13–3.38)], availability of oxytocin [AOR = 5.46 (95%CI; 2.41–12.3)], having exposure to manage third stage of labor [AOR = 2.91(95%CI; 1.55–5.48)], and having good knowledge [AOR = 2.67 (95%CI; 1.46–4.90)], were the factors associated with practice.ConclusionThis study showed that practice of active management of third stage of labor was high. Age group between 20–30 years, being a male obstetric care provider, having ≥2years work experience, availability of oxytocin, exposure to third stage management and having good knowledge were factors associated with practice. Therefore, all referral hospitals and concerned bodies need efforts to focus on providing training to increase health care provider’s knowledge so as to sustain good practice through appropriate interventions.

<p>Availability of feed resources, their utilization and balance between supply and demand in Burie Zuria district, north western Ethiopia, were assessedusing focus group discussion, individual interview, key informant interview and secondary data. Data was collected from February to April 2017 on 90, 30 and 30 households (HH)Hs selected from mid, high and low altitudes,respectively, using multi-stage sampling techniques. Data was analysed using FEAST version 2.21 and SPSS version 20.0. Mean land holding, livestock holding and family size were 1.8 ha, 9.03Tropical livestock unit (TLU) and 6.82 persons/HH, respectively. Crop residues, stubble grazing and natural pasture were major feed resources. Maize stover, finger millet and teff straws were the main crop residues produced in all agroecosystems (p&lt;0.05). Inappropriate collection, conservation and feed processing practices reduced efficiency of utilization. Utilizable dry matter (DM) supply was 12.87±0.41 t/HH/yr; and 7.2±0.69, 14.6±0.47 and 15.38±0.66 were from high, mid and low altitudes, respectively; crop residues contributed major part (9.76±0.76 t)(p&lt;0.05). Annual livestock maintenance DM requirement was 20.37±4.14 t/HH/yr with a deficit of 7.5±3.73 t, with DM requirement of 18.25±4.49, 26.78±4.14 and 16.09±3.83t/HH/yr (p&lt;0.05) for high, mid and low altitudes, respectively. Available DM satisfies 63.18 % of DM requirements, where 39.45, 54.51 and 95.58 % (p&lt;0.05) were for high, mid and low altitudes, respectively (p&lt;0.05), indicating more feed shortage at high altitude. In conclusion, the main feed resource is crop residue with low DM contribution. Thus apropriate crop residues management should be used.</p>

Background The extended postpartum period is the first twelve months following childbirth and is an important entry point for family planning service providers to reduce unintended and too closely spaced pregnancies. A modern postpartum family planning service is one of the recommended public health interventions for reducing maternal and child morbidity and mortalities in sitting where maternal mortality is high, like in Ethiopia. Objective This study was aimed to assess factors associated with the utilization of modern family planning methods during the extended postpartum period among mothers who gave birth in the last 12 months at Injibara town, Northwest, Ethiopia. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study design was employed from March 1–15/2019 at Injibara town among 402 mothers. The data was collected by a simple random sampling technique and analyzed using the SPSS 23.0 version. Logistic regression analyses were employed to estimate the crude and adjusted odds ratio with a confidence interval of 95% and a P-value of < 0.05 in multivariable analysis considered statistically significant. Frequency tables and descriptive summaries were used to describe the study variables. Results The total sample size of this study was 402 and among them, 400 postpartum mothers participated in the study with a response rate of 99.5%. The utilization of modern family planning methods during the extended postpartum period among postpartum mothers was 58.5% [95% CI: 53.5- 63%]. Of these, 38.9% and 32.9% of the mothers were using injectables and implants respectively. Secondary and above educational level, having ≥ 3 antenatal care visits, resumption of menstruation, discussing with the partner on utilization of family planning method, being counseled on family planning method utilization during antenatal care visits and immediately after delivery, linkage of the mothers to a family planning unit during child immunization, and having good knowledge of family planning methods were associated with utilization of modern family planning methods during the extended postpartum period. Conclusion The utilization of modern family planning methods during the extended postpartum period among postpartum women was low compared to the world health organization recommendation. Socio-demographic, health care service uptakes, and reproductive characteristics were associated with the utilization of modern family planning methods during the extended postpartum period. We suggest emphasizing the education and counseling of women on the utilization of family planning during maternal and child health care service utilization. Mothers should be encouraged to start using modern family planning methods before the resumption of menses.

Background Male partner involvement during the postpartum period is an effective strategy to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes. However, since reproductive health has been viewed as only a woman’s issue, it remains a major challenge in developing countries, including Ethiopia. The current study aimed to assess male partner involvement in postnatal care service utilization and associated factors in the Motta district of North West Ethiopia in 2020. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from March 16 to 30, 2020, among male partners whose wives gave birth in the last twelve months in Motta district. A systematic random sampling technique was used to obtain 612 study participants. Data entry was carried out by using Epi Data version 3.1 and exported to Statistical Package of Social Science version 23 for analysis. A binary and multiple logistic regression method were employed to estimate the crude and adjusted odds ratios with a confidence interval of 95% and a P value of less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results The findings from this study highlight that the overall male partner involvement in postnatal care service utilization was 20.8% at 95%CI (17.6%, 24.1%). The regression results indicated that male partners residing in urban areas, attending primary and secondary education, having good knowledge of postnatal care services, having good knowledge of danger signs and complications during the postnatal period, having a favorable attitude toward male partner involvement in postnatal care, and a short distance to health care facilities were shown to be significantly and positively associated with male partner involvement in postnatal care services. Conclusion The magnitude of male partner involvement in postnatal care service utilization was low as compared to other studies. Community-based awareness creation through health education and expanding educational and health care service institutions are essential to increase the involvement of male partners in postnatal care services.