WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA are hosting a series of joint webinars in sub-Saharan Africa to discuss and share the latest updates on efforts to ensure continuity of essential maternal and neonatal services during the COVID-19 outbreak.
The “1st Joint Regional Webinar: Continuity of Minimum Essential Maternal and Newborn Health Services at Health Facility Level in the Context of COVID-19” took place on April 9th to share guidance on the pandemic.
The objectives of the webinar were:
- Share regional situation of COVID-19
- Share highlights of the MNH guidance
- Updates from few teams on their continuity plan for MNH services country
- Q & A and discussion session
- Next Steps
Webinar speakers included:
- Assumpta Muriithi – Moderator
- Fatima Gohar – Regional overview and need for regional guiding
document - Muna Abdullah – Brief presentation of three approaches and the key
highlights on flow charts for suspected or confirmed COVID19 during
pregnancy - Nancy Kidula – Overview of annexes and monitoring mechanism
See below for a presentation and the webinar recording:
- Continuity of minimum essential maternal and newborn health services at health facility level in the context of COVID-19
- Listen to the webinar
The 2nd Joint Regional Webinar took place on April 23rd to share updated regional implementation, technical reference and early learnings/experiences on the continuity of essential maternal and neonatal services.
The objectives of the webinar were:
- Share updates on the regional situation of COVID-19
- Share new additions on the joint regional MNH continuity of MNH services implementation technical reference
- Share early learning and experiences from South Africa and Ethiopia
- Q and A and discussion session
Webinar speakers included:
- Assumpta Muriithi
- Fatima Gohar
- Professor Robert Pattinson
- Nancy Kidula
- Mahbub Ali
- Muna Abdulla
See below for presentations and the webinar recording:
- Coordination Mechanism for MNH Service Continuity in the context of COVID-19
- Framework and Guidelines for Maternal and Neonatal Care during a Crisis COVID-19 response
- Phased approach in line with transmission scenario
- Result of Poll on MNH service continuity
- COVID-19 Experience on the development of country-specific guidelines and a framework for South Africa
- Listen to the webinar
The “3rd Joint Regional Webinar: Monitoring the Continuity of MNH Services (Africa)” took place on May 7th to share early learnings and experiences in the region.
The objectives of the webinar were:
- Share country experiences and efforts to ensure the monitoring of MNH services in South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe
- Allow for Q&A and discussion among participants
Webinar speakers included:
- Prof Bob Pattinson (Director, Maternal and Infant Health Care, SA MRC Emeritus Professor, University of Pretoria, South Africa)
- Dr Davidzo Makosa (Acting Director for Family Health, MoHCC Zimbabwe)
- Malalay Ahmadzai (Health Manage, UNICEF Uganda)
See below for presentations, webinar recording and event flyer:
- COVID 19 Monitoring and evaluation in South Africa
- Ministry of Health and Child Care Zimbabwe: RMNCH Rapid Virtual Assessment
- Continuity and monitoring of the MNH services in the context of COVID-19: Experiences from Uganda
- Listen to the webinar
- Webinar flyer
The “4th Joint Regional Webinar: Key Consideration for Early Essential Newborn Care During COVID-19 Outbreak” took place on May 21 to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on maternal and newborn health services.
The objectives of the webinar were:
- Assessing the pandemic’s effect on the quality, availability and accessibility of health services for pregnant women and newborns
- Recovery of health systems after COVID-19
- Infection prevention and control
Webinar speakers included:
- Tedbabe Degefie Hailegebriel
- Dr. Mercedes Bonet
- Muna Abdullah (MD, MA)
See below for presentations and the webinar recording:
- Key Consideration for Early Essential Newborn Care During COVID-19 Outbreak
- Key considerations for intrapartum care within COVID-19
- Generic Algorithm to manage COVID-19 suspected or confirmed labouring mother
- Listen to the webinar
Please see resources for the 11th Joint Regional Webinar here.