A Surveillance System for the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Veronica B. Ajewole,, PharmD, BCOP; Ahone E. Ngujede, PhD, MSc, MA; Emmanuella Oduguwa, BS; Deepa Dongarwar, MS; Manvir Kaur, BDS, MHA; Cecelia Knight, BA; Maresha Jackson, BA; Uyen Nguyen; Tasha Roshan; Jordan Simpson; Igor Vouffo, BS; Omonike A. Olaleye, PhD, MPH; Hamisu M. Salihu, MD, PhD

doi:10.21106/ijma.411

International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS (Aug 2020)

A Surveillance System for the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Veronica B. Ajewole,, PharmD, BCOP,
Ahone E. Ngujede, PhD, MSc, MA,
Emmanuella Oduguwa, BS,
Deepa Dongarwar, MS,
Manvir Kaur, BDS, MHA,
Cecelia Knight, BA,
Maresha Jackson, BA,
Uyen Nguyen,
Tasha Roshan,
Jordan Simpson,
Igor Vouffo, BS,
Omonike A. Olaleye, PhD, MPH,
Hamisu M. Salihu, MD, PhD

Affiliations

Veronica B. Ajewole,, PharmD, BCOP: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Department of Pharmacy, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
Ahone E. Ngujede, PhD, MSc, MA: College of Business, Columbia Southern University, Orange Beach, AL, USA
Emmanuella Oduguwa, BS: Center of Excellence in Health Equity, Training, and Research, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
Deepa Dongarwar, MS: Center of Excellence in Health Equity, Training, and Research, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
Manvir Kaur, BDS, MHA: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Cecelia Knight, BA: Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; College of Science, Engineering, and Technology, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Maresha Jackson, BA: Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Jessie Jones School of Business, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Uyen Nguyen: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Tasha Roshan: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Jordan Simpson: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Igor Vouffo, BS: Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; College of Science, Engineering, and Technology, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Omonike A. Olaleye, PhD, MPH: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA; Maternal and Child Health Student Training Program, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, USA
Hamisu M. Salihu, MD, PhD: Department of Family and Community Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21106/ijma.411
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 9, no. 3

Abstract

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Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and its ensuing mitigation measures have negatively affected the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) population. There is currently no surveillance system established to enhance our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 transmission to guide policy decision making to protect the MCH population in this pandemic. Based on reports of community and household spread of this novel infection, we present an approach to a robust family-centered surveillance system for the MCH population. The surveillance system encapsulates data at the individual and community levels to inform stakeholders, policy makers, health officials and the general public about SARS-CoV-2 transmission dynamics within the MCH population. Key words: • COVID-19 • Coronavirus • Maternal and child health • Family-centered • Surveillance system • Individual level data elements • Community level data elements • Community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Copyright © 2020 Ajewole et al. Published by Global Health and Education Projects, Inc. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in this journal, is properly cited.

Published in International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS

ISSN: 2161-8674 (Print); 2161-864X (Online)
Publisher: Global Health and Education Projects, Inc.
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://mchandaids.org/

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