The Merck Sharp &Dohme (MSD) for Ugandan Mothers (MUM) project is a three-year project that seeks to unlock the potential and therefore expand the provision of private sector maternal health care in Uganda. Its implementation started in October 2012 in seven (7) mostly rural districts. It expanded to Kampala in 2013 partly to investigate if private sector facilities can effectively reduce on the patient overload for child delivery services in public health facilities (PHFs). In 2016, consultants from Socio-Economic Data Centre Ltd were contracted to conduct a pilot to test the potential of private clinics to decongest PHFs at two PHFs i.e. Kawaala HC III in Lubaga Division and Kisenyi HC IV in Central Division.
PROJECT TITLE
Birth plans, preferences and practices among pregnant women attending ANC in Kawaala HCIII and Kisenyi HCIV, Kampala Uganda
To track women’s practices on seeking services for antenatal care (ANC), child delivery and postnatal care over a period of six (6) months. The study also sought to track their perceptions about private health facilities and willingness to pay for maternal healthcare (MH) services.
A longitudinal study design using quantitative methods of data collection was used to track the performance of the pilot study activities between March and October 2016. A total of 476 pregnant women that met the inclusion criteria out of 2,234 screened were recruited from the two PHFs (i.e. Kawaala HC III & Kisenyi HC IV) and followed up at their homes for the Round 1 survey. Round 1 survey reached 316 women; 160 either left the cohort or could not be traced using the location and contact information provided at recruitment. IPC agents reached 293 women while the Round 2 survey covered 254 women in the cohort. The main data collection method was a structured questionnaire
