MCHIP Yemen Quarterly Report October to December 2013 Q1

The program was implemented in collaboration with various partners, including Jhpiego, John Snow, Inc., Save the Children, and the Institute of International Programs/Johns Hopkins University. During the reporting period of October to December 2013, MCHIP continued to recruit essential staff, including a Finance & Operations Manager, Finance & Administrative Officer, Program Officer, Maternal Health Officer, Immunization Officer, and Child Health Officer. The Deputy Chief of Party and Technical Director candidates were selected and were expected to join the project in January 2014. MCHIP advanced several critical workplan activities during this period, including a 5-day training workshop on postpartum intrauterine device (PPIUD) insertion in Al-Sabeen Hospital in November. The workshop was attended by 12 trainees from five public hospitals in Sana'a City and two Non-Governmental Organization's (NGO) Reproductive Health (RH) centers. A one-day workshop was also conducted in December to introduce a quality improvement (QI) approach to the management staff and maternal/newborn health service providers of Al-Sabeen Hospital, Sana'a. In addition, MCHIP coordinated an exercise to estimate the current national coverage of uterotonic use in the third stage of labor (UUTSL) in Yemen. The findings of the exercise estimated current coverage of UUTSL in Yemen at 14.7%. These findings will inform continuing work by MCHIP and other stakeholders to improve UUTSL coverage and reduce mortality from postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). MCHIP also conducted an Immunization Review Meeting in Dhamar Governorate to review the implementation of the 2013 districts' micro-plans, identify the main problems that prevent children from being vaccinated, propose applicable interventions, and develop district plans for 2014. All these workshops/trainings were followed by follow-up visits to ensure that participants started using the new skills and improved behaviors they acquired during the workshops. The MCHIP/Yemen Maternal Health Officer attended a workshop on the prevention of PPH program in India to learn about the MCHIP/India program activities and gain more information about other countries' experiences in implementing PPH programs. Based on the visit, adaptation of India's successful PPH program to the Yemeni context is being explored. MCHIP also conducted a six-day training in Dhamar City for field researchers for the Maternal, Infant, and Young Child-Family Planning (MIYCN-FP) study planned for Dhamar. Field work for the study began at the end of the reporting period. MCHIP sponsored travel for the Deputy Minister for Population to participate in the International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP 2013) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to gain skills and knowledge about global FP research developments and program best practices to apply to future FP programming in Yemen. MCHIP accomplishments successfully motivated the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MOPHP) to request from MCHIP the provision of technical assistance to the Dhamar Health Office during the polio Supplementary Immunization Activities (SIAs). The MCHIP Immunization Officer traveled to Dhamar Governorate to meet with the Governorate Health Office (GHO) Director, Primary Health Care (PHC) Manager, and EPI Manager, attend the launching of the polio SIAs, and conduct field visits to supervise implementation of the polio SIAs and monitor the performance of the vaccination teams. Two research protocols were finalized and one was approved during the reporting period, including the MIYCN-FP Trials of Improved Practices (TIPs) study which was approved by the MOPHP and Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Institutional Review Board (IRB) and, pending modifications prior to approval, the Long Acting Reversible Contraceptive (LARC) studies. All preparatory activities for the TIPs were completed, and the data collection phase started at the end of December. The MCHIP program aimed to assist countries in scaling up evidence-based, high-impact maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) interventions and the Family Planning (FP) program. The program's goal was to improve maternal, newborn, and child health outcomes through the implementation of evidence-based interventions and the promotion of family planning practices. MCHIP worked closely with the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MOPHP) and other stakeholders to implement the program's activities. The program's accomplishments were significant, and they motivated the MOPHP to request technical assistance from MCHIP to support the implementation of the polio SIAs in Dhamar Governorate. The program's research activities were also significant, with the completion of two research protocols and the approval of one. The data collection phase for the MIYCN-FP TIPs study started at the end of December, and the program's research activities were expected to continue in the coming months.