olusola oladeji - UNICEF Ethiopia, Somali Field Office, Ethiopia
Paul Mudzongo - UNICEF Ethiopia, Somali Field Office, Ethiopia
Rashid Abdulai - UNICEF Ethiopia Country Office, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Abdi Fekdid Mursel - UNICEF Ethiopia, Somali Field Office, Ethiopia
Mohamed Badel Ali - Relief and Development for Vulnerable (RDV), Somali Region, Ethiopia
Bashir Sheik Mohammed - UNICEF Ethiopia, Somali Field Office, Ethiopia

Background: In spite of the decentralization of diagnosis and treatment of severe acute malnutrition from the strictly hospital-based approach for all cases to community-based approach, only about ۱۰%-۱۵% of the estimated ۱۶.۵ million children suffering from severe acute malnutrition have access to treatment. The study assessed the use of Family Mid Upper Arm Circumference (Family -MUAC) for screening of acute malnutrition in Somali Region of Ethiopia.Methods: This study used mix of qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analysis to describe the process and outcome of a pilot project using mentor mothers to screen for acute malnutrition among children under five using Family MUAC. This was conducted in ۵ districts (woredas) of Somali Region of Ethiopia.Results: Between ۷۳ and ۹۱ percent of the mentor mothers across the five project sites were able to correctly use the MUAC tape immediately after the training. Children correctly diagnosed as severe acute malnutrition (SAM) during the first month of the project by the mentor mothers ranged from ۷۰.۰ % to ۸۳.۸%, but the accuracy of measurement reduced at the end of the ۶ months project period to between ۵۹.۸% and ۶۶.۷% across the ۵ project woredas (districts). The SAM referrals by mentor motherscontributed between ۱۰% and ۳۶.۲% of all cases of SAM admitted in the project woredas over the ۶ months period.Conclusion: This study demonstrated the ability of mentor mothers to use the color coded MUAC tape to detect severe acute malnutrition among children.

Family Mid Upper Arm, Circumference, Mentor mothers, Acute malnutrition, Ethiopia