BackgroundIndia is committed to improving maternal and newborn health in order to achieve the targets for India’s Millennium Development Goal 4. Considering their role as a link between community and health systems, frontline workers (FLWs) can be effectively utilized in strengthening maternal and newborn care. In this paper, we set out to examine the effect of intensity of contact with FLWs on key maternal and newborn health behaviors and to determine if this association varies by status of Self Help Group (SHG) membership.MethodsThis population-based cross-sectional study included 2208 currently married women aged 15–49 years who had delivered a baby during the last 15 months prior to the survey and selected through a multi-stage cluster sampling from rural villages and urban wards. The outcome of interest included variables related to key knowledge and practice of healthy behavior in relation to maternal and newborn health and exposure variable considered was intensity of contact with FLWs.ResultsOf the women interviewed, 1729 (78%) belonged to SHG household. For knowledge on the need for at least 3 antenatal care (ANC) check-ups, two tetanus toxoid (TT) injections and consumption of 100 or more iron-folic acid (IFA) tablets, proportion of those who were aware of these practices increased with increasing number of contacts with FLWs (P value < 0.001). Practice for TT injections showed an increasing trend with increasing number of contacts with FLW. An increase in the odds of delivering in an institution was observed in those who had higher number of contacts as compared to those with no contacts (P value < 0.001). With regard to newborn healthy behavior practice, breastfeeding within 1 h of delivery showed significant association and the odds of this practice improved in those who had ≥ 3 contacts with FLW as compared to those had no contacts. Except for consumption of 100 or more IFA tablets, there was no interaction of these associations by SHG status.ConclusionThere was an overall low prevalence of both knowledge and practice of key maternal and newborn healthy behaviors and only a few of these were associated with frequency of contacts with FLW. Findings not only highlight the urgent need for effectively leveraging FLWs to strengthen maternal and newborn care but also to improve the quality of services provided by them.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s41043-017-0129-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundAppropriate immediate newborn care is vital for neonatal survival. Antenatal period is a crucial time to impart knowledge and awareness to mothers regarding newborn care, either during facility visits or during home visits by community health workers (CHWs) especially in the rural context. In this paper, we report newborn care practices in rural Uttar Pradesh (UP) and have explored association between newborn care practices with antenatal care, contact with community health workers during pregnancy and place of childbirth.MethodsWe use cross-sectional baseline data (which is part of a larger intervention project) collected from 129 gram panchayats (GPs) from 15 administrative blocks spread over five districts of UP in 2013. From currently married women (n = 2208) of 15–49 years, who delivered 15 months prior to the survey, we collected information on women’s demographic and socio-economic characteristics, knowledge and practice of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child health and nutrition behaviours. Association of newborn practices with antenatal care, contacts by community health worker during pregnancy and place of childbirth were tested using random intercept logistic regression, adjusting for socio-economic and demographic factors and accounting for clustering at the GP and block levels.ResultsEighty-three percent of 2208 mothers received ANC, but only half of the respondents received a minimum of three ANC visits. More than two thirds of respondents delivered at a health facility. Practice of newborn care was poor: merely one fourth of women practised clean cord care, one third of women followed good breastfeeding practices (initiation with an hour of birth, fed colostrum and did not give pre-lacteal feeds) and one third provided adequate thermal care (kept baby warm and delayed bathing). Only 5% followed all above practices with evidence of clustering of newborn care practices at the block and GP levels. While facility-based childbirth was strongly associated with appropriate newborn care practices, ANC visits and contacts with CHWs was not associated with all newborn care practices.ConclusionThe quality of ANC care provided needs to be improved to have an impact on newborn care practices. Our finding emphasizes the importance of facility-based birthing. There is a need for training CHWs to strengthen their counselling skills on newborn care. Variation of newborn care practices between communities should be taken into consideration while implementing any intervention to optimize benefits.

BACKGROUND: India is the land of most rapidly ageing population (aged 60 years and above) in the developing world. This phenomenon is marked by a series of social, cultural and economic implications due to a greater prevalence of morbidity and functional disability in this age group. The objective of the study is to assess Activities of Daily Living among elderly in a rural population. METHODOLOGY: The study was a population based cross sectional study conducted among 450 elderly subjects from 60 years and above residing in Poonamallee block of Thiruvallur district in Tamil Nadu. Data regarding activities of daily living was assessed using Katz scale. Informed consent was obtained from all the participants. The ethical clearance was obtained from institutional ethics committee. RESULTS: Majority of the study subjects were elderly females 274 (60.9%). Large proportion of elders 222 (49.3%) were in the age group 60-65 years. Large proportion of elders 269 (59.7%) were illiterate. Majority of the elderly 356 (79.1%) were unemployed. The prevalence of dependence for all activities of daily living was almost similar for males (5.7%) and females (5.5%). Difference in prevalence was found to be statistically not significant (p=0.92) CONCLUSION: There should be a proper support from all sections towards the elderly. The community must be encouraged to let elderly participate in different activities, which will reduce dependence on others.

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