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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Sofia Gruskin, JD, MIA¹, Jane Cottingham, MSc², Mindy Jane Roseman, JD, PhD³, Adriane Martin Hilber, MPH², Ornella Lincetto, MD⁴, Eszter Kismodi, JD, PhD², and Laura Ferguson, MS¹. (1) Program on International Health and Human Rights, Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard University, 651 Huntington Ave, 7th Floor, Boston, MA 02115, (2) Department of Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organisation, 1211, Geneva, 27, Switzerland, (3) Human Rights Program, Harvard Law School, Pound Hall 401, Cambridge, MA 02138, 617-495-6912, mroseman@law.harvard.edu, (4) Department of Making Pregnancy Safer, World Health Organisation, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211, Geneva, 27, Switzerland

Many approaches have been tested that seek to reduce maternal mortality and improve neonatal health, and yet these remain major public health challenges in the developing world. A Tool (comprising a data collection instrument and the process of its application) has been developed by the Program on International Health and Human Rights, Harvard School of Public Health and the Department of Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization that applies a human rights framework to the issues of maternal and neonatal health. Field tests are ongoing in Mozambique, Brazil and Indonesia.

For use by national-level health programmers, the Tool is designed to identify and address legal, policy and regulatory barriers to women's access to and use of services. Designed to capture information relevant to both health and human rights, successful use of the Tool can inform the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programs.

Application of the Tool is a three stage process: establishing commitment and leadership; adaptation to the local context, data compilation and analysis; and prioritising for action. From the outset, this is a government-led process that is inclusive, consultative, transparent and accountable.

Use of the Tool can enable identification of actions needed to eliminate barriers to maternal and neonatal health; facilitate the active engagement of other players in identifying and addressing specific non-health sector barriers; and document efforts using a rights perspective to achieve international development goals related to maternal and neonatal health.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Recognize how health and human rights data can be used together to promote program effectiveness
• Discuss how a human rights framework can facilitate the identification of barriers to maternal and neonatal health
• Articulate how using human rights can increase the engagement of a wide range of actors in addressing non-health sector barriers to maternal and neonatal health.

Keywords: Human Rights, Policy/Policy Development

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation