AB075. Maternal, newborn, and child health service delivery for Myanmar migrants along the Thailand-Myanmar Border from an implementation science perspective
Abstract

AB075. Maternal, newborn, and child health service delivery for Myanmar migrants along the Thailand-Myanmar Border from an implementation science perspective

Zin Nwe Win1, Ruhul Amin2, Eric Ribaira2, Brandon Chua Wen Bing1

1International Unit, Health Intervention and Technology Assessment Program Foundation (HITAP), Ministry of Public Health, Nonthaburi, Thailand; 2United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Yangon, Myanmar

Background: Multiple factors affect access to maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) services among Myanmar migrants who cross the Thailand-Myanmar border. Implementation science frameworks such as the Practical, Robust Implementation, and Sustainability Model (PRISM) can guide the design, implementation, and evaluation of programs by mapping out context and key outcomes to measure. The objective of this study is to summarize the current evidence on MNCH service delivery, including barriers and facilitators for migrants from Myanmar along the Thailand-Myanmar border to guide policy and program development.

Methods: Two independent reviewers systematically searched on PubMed, Embase, and Scopus, without date limitations. Studies were included if they involved (I) migrants from Myanmar at the Thailand-Myanmar border, and (II) reported on health outcomes, service delivery, or health financing for participants aged less than 18 years old and those who were pregnant. Published studies as of 17 February 2025 were included without language restrictions. Findings were summarized using PRISM.

Results: A total of 101 studies, published from 1989 to 2025, were included from 1,451 records. The majority of the studies were conducted in Tak province (90%). Infectious diseases were most commonly evaluated (23%). Recipient characteristics were well characterized: insecure legal status in Thailand, poor literacy, mobile work arrangements, and long distances to health facilities. Organizational characteristics involved healthcare capacity limitations. Recipients value culturally sensitive services, mobile clinics near workplaces, and informal support networks. Providers expressed high commitment to service delivery despite manpower challenges. A network of public and non-governmental service providers facilitated service delivery, but restrictive pathways in Thailand for nationality verification were reported. Intervention outcomes varied across studies, with treatment outcomes, nutritional status, and mortality more commonly reported as effectiveness measures.

Conclusions: Contextually relevant factors and key outcomes for consideration were synthesized using PRISM. This, coupled with active multi-sectoral stakeholder engagement, can guide the development of contextually relevant MNCH programs along the Thailand-Myanmar border.

Keywords: Myanmar; implementation science; maternal and child health; migrants; service delivery

Footnote

Conflicts of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the noncommercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/jphe-26-ab075
Cite this abstract as: Win ZN, Amin R, Ribaira E, Bing BCW. AB075. Maternal, newborn, and child health service delivery for Myanmar migrants along the Thailand-Myanmar Border from an implementation science perspective. J Public Health Emerg 2026;10:AB075.

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