South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program
Abstract Background South-South Cooperation (SSC) is recognized as a vital component of goal 17 – ‘Partnerships for the goals’ within the SDGs and countries in the global south has been utilizing this cooperation mainly in research. We report the first health care professional exchange program throu...
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BMC
2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12225-7 |
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| author | Abraham Fessehaye Sium Wondimu Gudu Abrham Getachew Diomede Ntasumbumuyange Polyphile Nithinyurwa Tamrat Endale Woldemichael Delayehu Bekele |
| author_facet | Abraham Fessehaye Sium Wondimu Gudu Abrham Getachew Diomede Ntasumbumuyange Polyphile Nithinyurwa Tamrat Endale Woldemichael Delayehu Bekele |
| author_sort | Abraham Fessehaye Sium |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background South-South Cooperation (SSC) is recognized as a vital component of goal 17 – ‘Partnerships for the goals’ within the SDGs and countries in the global south has been utilizing this cooperation mainly in research. We report the first health care professional exchange program through this south-to-south collaboration focusing on advancing quality of abortion care in the Sub-Saharan region. Methods We conducted a comprehensive mixed method study, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative approaches, to assess the impact of health care professionals’ exchange program within the obstetrics and gynecology departments of two teaching institutions in Ethiopia and Rwanda over the course of a year (February 1, 2023-January 31,2024). Our methodology involved administering a self-administered questionnaire on Google Form to health professionals who participated in the exchange program. Qualitative data were collected through an in-depth interview with representative subjects from these professionals. Simple descriptive statistics using SPSS version 23 was employed to analyze the quantitative data. For the qualitative data, recruitment of participants continued until thematic saturation was achieved, signifying no emergence of new themes. Thematic analysis, following initial coding and inter-coder agreement, was employed to identify key themes from the interviews. Finally, triangulation of qualitative and quantitative data was performed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the program’s impact. Results Among 60 health care professionals whom we have approached for this survey, 55 consented and participated in the survey, representing a response rate of 92%. Among them, 35 (63.6%) were from Rwanda, 20 (36.4%) were from Ethiopia, 23.6% were females, 80.0% were residents and 16.4% were midwives. The overall mean scores for knowledge, attitude, and practice transformation on safe abortion care by Rwandese professionals were 84.9%, 84.5%, and 84.6%, respectively. From the Ethiopian side, the overall score for knowledge and attitude, and intent to practice demonstration were 81.3, 83.4%. Essentially, they expressed that it allowed them to inspire Rwandese counterparts on the importance of women’s reproductive rights and implementation of global best practice (89%). On analysis of the qualitative data, we identified 3 overarching themes: 1) Opportunities created by the exchange 2) Inputs on safe abortion care quality improvement 3) Recommendations for future exchange programs. Most participants indicated that the exchange program was very helpful in advancing knowledge, attitude, and intent to practice quality abortion care. Participants from both sides agreed that the safe abortion care services provided in Ethiopia is far advanced, which can be reproduced in Rwanda by implementing the lessons learned from the exchange program. Conclusion South-to-south collaboration through health care professionals exchange programs among developing countries (including Sub-Saharan Africa) is feasible and helpful in transforming the level of reproductive health practice (mainly safe abortion care) as well as advocating for better reproductive health rights in these countries. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c3b9f176213549d993f8fd3e0024fe2b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1472-6963 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
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| spelling | doaj-art-c3b9f176213549d993f8fd3e0024fe2b2025-01-26T12:22:07ZengBMCBMC Health Services Research1472-69632025-01-012511910.1186/s12913-025-12225-7South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange programAbraham Fessehaye Sium0Wondimu Gudu1Abrham Getachew2Diomede Ntasumbumuyange3Polyphile Nithinyurwa4Tamrat Endale Woldemichael5Delayehu Bekele6Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical CollegeDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical CollegeDepartment of Nutrition, School of Public Health, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical CollegeDepartment of Obstetrics & Gynecology, School of Medicine and Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Science, University of RwandaDepartment of Obstetrics & Gynecology, School of Medicine and Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Science, University of RwandaCenter for Internation Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT), Michigan Medicine, University of MichiganDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical CollegeAbstract Background South-South Cooperation (SSC) is recognized as a vital component of goal 17 – ‘Partnerships for the goals’ within the SDGs and countries in the global south has been utilizing this cooperation mainly in research. We report the first health care professional exchange program through this south-to-south collaboration focusing on advancing quality of abortion care in the Sub-Saharan region. Methods We conducted a comprehensive mixed method study, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative approaches, to assess the impact of health care professionals’ exchange program within the obstetrics and gynecology departments of two teaching institutions in Ethiopia and Rwanda over the course of a year (February 1, 2023-January 31,2024). Our methodology involved administering a self-administered questionnaire on Google Form to health professionals who participated in the exchange program. Qualitative data were collected through an in-depth interview with representative subjects from these professionals. Simple descriptive statistics using SPSS version 23 was employed to analyze the quantitative data. For the qualitative data, recruitment of participants continued until thematic saturation was achieved, signifying no emergence of new themes. Thematic analysis, following initial coding and inter-coder agreement, was employed to identify key themes from the interviews. Finally, triangulation of qualitative and quantitative data was performed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the program’s impact. Results Among 60 health care professionals whom we have approached for this survey, 55 consented and participated in the survey, representing a response rate of 92%. Among them, 35 (63.6%) were from Rwanda, 20 (36.4%) were from Ethiopia, 23.6% were females, 80.0% were residents and 16.4% were midwives. The overall mean scores for knowledge, attitude, and practice transformation on safe abortion care by Rwandese professionals were 84.9%, 84.5%, and 84.6%, respectively. From the Ethiopian side, the overall score for knowledge and attitude, and intent to practice demonstration were 81.3, 83.4%. Essentially, they expressed that it allowed them to inspire Rwandese counterparts on the importance of women’s reproductive rights and implementation of global best practice (89%). On analysis of the qualitative data, we identified 3 overarching themes: 1) Opportunities created by the exchange 2) Inputs on safe abortion care quality improvement 3) Recommendations for future exchange programs. Most participants indicated that the exchange program was very helpful in advancing knowledge, attitude, and intent to practice quality abortion care. Participants from both sides agreed that the safe abortion care services provided in Ethiopia is far advanced, which can be reproduced in Rwanda by implementing the lessons learned from the exchange program. Conclusion South-to-south collaboration through health care professionals exchange programs among developing countries (including Sub-Saharan Africa) is feasible and helpful in transforming the level of reproductive health practice (mainly safe abortion care) as well as advocating for better reproductive health rights in these countries.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12225-7South-south collaborationQuality abortion careSub-Saharan AfricaEthiopiaRwanda |
| spellingShingle | Abraham Fessehaye Sium Wondimu Gudu Abrham Getachew Diomede Ntasumbumuyange Polyphile Nithinyurwa Tamrat Endale Woldemichael Delayehu Bekele South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program BMC Health Services Research South-south collaboration Quality abortion care Sub-Saharan Africa Ethiopia Rwanda |
| title | South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| title_full | South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| title_fullStr | South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| title_full_unstemmed | South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| title_short | South to south collaboration: advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| title_sort | south to south collaboration advancing quality of abortion care through health care professionals exchange program |
| topic | South-south collaboration Quality abortion care Sub-Saharan Africa Ethiopia Rwanda |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12225-7 |
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