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  • Original Article
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Feasibility and acceptability of gentamicin in the Uniject prefilled injection system for community-based treatment of possible neonatal sepsis: the experience of female community health volunteers in Nepal

Journal of Perinatology volume 32, pages 959–965 (2012)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective:

Explore feasibility and acceptability of gentamicin in the Uniject prefilled injection system, in combination with oral cotrimoxazole-p and an appropriate newborn weighing scale, for treatment of possible neonatal sepsis when administered in the community by female community health volunteers.

Study Design:

In a community-based program in Nepal, 45 volunteers recorded 422 live births. Among these, 82 infants were identified as having possible severe bacterial infection. In all, 67 of these infants were treated with gentamicin in Uniject and 15 were referred to the health facility. Mixed methods were used to collect data about Uniject performance, acceptability and safety.

Result:

Volunteers successfully treated 67 infants with gentamicin in Uniject. Gentamicin in Uniject performed well and was acceptable.

Conclusion:

Gentamicin in Uniject, in combination with cotrimoxazole-p and an appropriate newborn weighing scale, is a feasible and acceptable option for treatment of possible neonatal sepsis in the community by female community health volunteers.

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Acknowledgements

This research was made possible by the generous support of the American people through the USAID. The contents of this document are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Nepal Family Health Program (NFHP) II, PATH/Health Tech, USAID or the United States government. We thank the mothers and newborns of the five VDCs of Morang who participated in this study and the members of the health facility management committee, CHWs and FCHV who worked so hard to complete this study. Our sincere thank goes to Dinesh Kumar Chapagain, District Public Health Administrator and Tek Raj Koirala, Public Health Inspector, in the Morang District Public Health Office for their continuous support and involvement in implementing, monitoring and supervising the program. We thank the Community-Based Integrated Management of Childhood Illness Section, Child Health Division, MoHP, for their continuous support and guidance on the program, and Indra Kumar Bhattarai, who worked as a consultant to implement this study at the field level. Our thanks to Robin Houston for reviewing this manuscript; to Abra Greene for preparing this manuscript; and to Saving Newborn Lives, NFHP II and USAID/Nepal for supporting implementation of the MINI project. This work was supported by USAID; MINI; PATH; and Instituto Biologico Argentino (BIOL).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. PATH, Seattle, WA, USA

    P S Coffey

  2. Nepal Family Health Program II/USAID, John Snow Inc (JSI), Patandhoka, Lalitpur, Nepal

    J Sharma, K C Gargi, D Neupane & P Dawson

  3. Child Health Division, Department of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Population, Teku, Kathmandu, Nepal

    Y V Pradhan

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  1. P S Coffey
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  2. J Sharma
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  4. D Neupane
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  5. P Dawson
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Correspondence to P S Coffey.

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Coffey, P., Sharma, J., Gargi, K. et al. Feasibility and acceptability of gentamicin in the Uniject prefilled injection system for community-based treatment of possible neonatal sepsis: the experience of female community health volunteers in Nepal. J Perinatol 32, 959–965 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2012.20

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