USAID Announces $75 Million Program to Save Lives of Women and Families Worldwide

	Mothers and children waiting in a health facility.
	A newborn rests while receiving quality health care.

The Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition is pleased to announce a new, worldwide cooperative agreement called Access to Clinical and Community Maternal, Neonatal and Women's Health Services (ACCESS), a five-year $75 million program to save the lives of mothers and newborns in developing nations.

ACCESS, a five year, $75,000,000 Leader With Associates cooperative agreement, has been awarded to JHPIEGO. The partnership team includes: Save the Children, the American College of Nurse-Midwives, the Futures Group, The Academy for Educational Development, and Interchurch Medical Assistance.

ACCESS will be the centerpiece activity in support of the Bureau for Global Health Maternal Health Strategic Objective. ACCESS will also assist USAID and its partners to develop strategic approaches and implement technical interventions in the field to address neonatal morbidity and mortality. Additionally, where opportunities exist, ACCESS will integrate proven interventions to address women’s health and nutrition as part of a platform of essential maternal/neonatal and women’s health care. The program’s main purpose is to support missions to achieve maternal, newborn and women’s health objectives. Specifically, the program is expected to greatly increase coverage of women and their newborns – especially those who are poor and underserved – with proven interventions with high potential public health impact.

Proven technical interventions in which ACCESS staff will be able to provide technical assistance and support include:

• Birth preparation, including self-care, identification of a skilled attendant, and a plan for emergency transport and care
• Antenatal care, including interventions to prevent and control malaria, prevention of mother-to-child-transmission of HIV/AIDS, tetanus toxoid immunization, adequate nutrition including micronutrient supplementation, and identification and treatment of complications and infections, especially sexually transmitted infections
• Safe delivery, including services to prevent postpartum hemorrhage, infection, prolonged/obstructed labor, and mother-to-child-transmission of HIV.
• Postpartum care, including maternal nutrition, hygiene, and family planning.
• Treatment of obstetric complications, including post-abortion care
• Normal newborn care, including drying and warming, eye and cord care, early breastfeeding, vitamin A and immunizations.
• Basic care for sick newborns including stimulation and resuscitation, kangaroo care for low birth weight infants, and treatment of infections

In addition, ACCESS will have on-demand capability to respond to mission-requested targets of opportunity to respond to priority women’s health problems. These activities will be funded primarily through field support or associate awards although a limited core set aside will be made available for priority needs. Priority areas include:

• Family planning and birth spacing, with special emphasis on, but not limited to, postpartum and post-abortion family planning.
• Prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS.
• Prevention and treatment of micronutrient deficiencies, especially anemia.
• Care and support of victims of domestic violence.
• Treatment of serious disabilities resulting from complications of pregnancy and childbirth, e.g., obstetric fistula.
• Prevention and treatment of cervical cancer.

A core set of activities are essential to the delivery of the aforementioned maternal/neonatal and women’s health provided in referral facilities, basic health care facilities or in community-based programs:

• National level policy dialogue and promotion of internationally accepted standards of practice, provider mandate, adequate financing and fee policies, and functional referral systems
• Quality improvement processes
• Upgrading facilities to meet standards
• Commodity and logistics support
• Human resource management
• Strategies to provide community-based delivery of key interventions at household level, where appropriate
• Behavior change strategies to involve and mobilize communities to improve self-care and use of services
• Strategies to increase the population reach and sustainability of programs.

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