Pakistan

Factors Influencing Job Satisfaction of Nurses in Public Hospitals

Nurses play a crucial and important role in hospitals . Job satisfaction among any profession helps the individuals to perform better. In profes sion of nursing, job satisfaction has supreme importance, as they will perform better which ultimately af fect the condition of patients. The study aim s to examine satisfaction of job ( i.e. salary, working hours and work environment ) among nurses working in public hospitals [from abstract]

Comparative Assessment of Health Care Delivery Systems of Developing Countries: Pakistan versus Cuba

The healthcare system of developing countries are immersed in the complex issues of governance and financing of health care, human resource inequity and lack of access to quality health services, which are significantly impacting on the delivery of health services to the consumers. This paper will highlight on of health care system of Pakistan and Cuba under the spheres of their health care delivery system, organizational structure, authority and power structure, decision making process, future challenges and their resolutions. [from abstract]

Islam and Family Planning: Changing Perceptions of Health Care Providers and Medical Faculty in Pakistan

Training health care providers and medical college faculty about the supportive nature of Islam toward
family planning principles addressed their misconceptions and enhanced their level of comfort in providing
family planning services and teaching the subject. [from synopsis]

Pakistan’s Urbanization Challenges: Health

This paper provides a snapshot of health and population trends in Pakistan, with a view toward demonstrating the changing paradigm of the urban-rural dynamic. A new health systems governance assessment approach toward urbanization and health issues is subsequently discussed, and the paper outlines a new framework of principles and their pertinence. [from abstract]

Community Based Education in Health Professions: Global Perspectives

“Community Based Education in Health Professions: Global Perspectives” presents a collection of case studies from Bangladesh, Brazil, Egypt, India, Pakistan and South Africa describing different ways of planning, implementing and sustaining community-based education for health students. The case studies provide an account of what worked and what did not, the trials and errors, and the challenges and lessons learned. [adapted from introduction]

How Well Can Physicians Manage Tuberculosis? A Public-Private Sector Comparison from Karachi, Pakistan

This study endeavored to identify the gap in knowledge regarding the diagnosis and management of tuberculosis between public and private doctors and the factors affecting these knowledge scores in urban Pakistan. [adapted from abstract]

Final Push for Polio Eradication: Addressing the Challenge of Violence in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria

The authors explore the different contexts of violence against polio vaccination workers and make policy proposals on how to respond to attacks on vaccination workers and to other factors that are impeding the final push for polio eradication. [adapted from author]

Why We Must Provide Better Support for Pakistan's Female Frontline Health Workers

This article summarizes the key role that lady health workers play in polio eradication; outlines the problems faced by these workers such as the risk to their lives through shootings and bombings, the lack of a living wage and dearth of advancement opportunities; and offers suggestions to improve the situation.

Role of Social Geography on Lady Health Workers' Mobility and Effectiveness in Pakistan

This study explores whether and how socio-cultural factors such as influence of gendered norms and extended family relationships impact lady health workers’ home-visit rates. [adapted from abstract]

Islam and Family Planning: Changing Perceptions of Health Care Providers and Medical Faculty in Pakistan

The authors evaluated the effectiveness of a training for facility-based health care providers, managers, and medical college faculty members that offered client-centered family planning services, including a module to explain the Islamic viewpoint on family planning. [adapted from abstract]

Using Verbal Autopsy to Ascertain Perinatal Cause of Death: Are Trained Non-Physicians Adequate?

This initiative’s objective was to develop a standardized verbal autopsy training program and evaluate whether its implementation resulted in comparable knowledge required to classify perinatal cause of death by physicians and non-physicians. [from abstract]

Improving Community Health Workers' Knowledge and Behavior about Proper Content in Malaria Education

This article reports on an intervention to enhance the knowledge and behavior of community health workers on providing adequate
education to patients on malaria. [adapted from author]

Case Study: Does Training of Private Networks of Family Planning Clinicians in Urban Pakistan Affect Service Utilization?

This study aimed to determine whether training of providers participating in franchise clinic networks is associated with increased family planning service use among low-income urban families in Pakistan.

Medical Education and Research in Pakistan

This comment reveals that despite what seem to be impressive gains in medical education and health research in Pakistan, the actual state of affairs is neither exciting nor remarkable. [from author]

From Housewife to Health Worker: Touching Other Lives and Changing My Own

This interview with Shaheen Hussain of Pakistan tells the story of how she became a field-based health educator with a social franchise of private reproductive health care providers and is a testimony of how this program not only touches the lives of the women who receive the reproductive health services but also of the health educators themselves.

Gender and Social Geography: Impact on Lady Health Workers Mobility in Pakistan

In Pakistan, where gendered norms restrict women’s mobility, female community health workers (CHWs) provide doorstep primary health services to home-bound women. This study aims to understand how these cultural norms affect CHWs’ home-visit rates and the quality of services delivered. [from abstract]

Death Certificate Completion Skills of Hospital Physicians in a Devloping Country

Death certificates can provide valuable health status data regarding disease incidence, prevalence and mortality in a community to guide local health policy and help in setting priorities. This study evaluated the accuracy of death certificates at a tertiary care teaching hospital in a Karachi, Pakistan. [adapted from abstract]

Lady Health Worker Program in Pakistan: A Commentary

This article describes the Lady Health Worker Program in Pakistan based on training women from local communities to provide specific, basic primary health-care treatment plus preventive services and the success of the program in enabling timely treatment, prevention and even screening. [adapted from author]

Experience of Nurses with Using eHealth in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan: A Qualitative Study in Primary and Secondary Healthcare

To improve the quality of health care in remote parts of Pakistan, a research project was initiated in the mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan using information and communication technology to improve patient care and support continuing education of health providers (eHealth). This paper describes the experience of nurses in using eHealth in their routine practices. [from abstract]

Job Satisfaction among Public Health Professionals Working in Public Sector: A Cross Sectional Study from Pakistan

The objective of the study was to determine the level of and factors influencing job satisfaction among public health professionals in the public sector. [from abstract]

Migration of Health Workers: A Challenge for Health Care System

This article outlines the issue of health worker migration and its impact on health systems of developing countries. It recommends a strategic approach by governments and other agencies for regulating the flow of health workers between countries using a range of policies and interventions to deal with the broader health system issues. [adapted from abstract]

Physician Migration at Its Roots: A Study on the Factors Contributing Towards a Career Choice Abroad Among Students at a Medical School in Pakistan

The main objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of migration intentions in medical undergraduates, to elucidate the factors responsible and to analyze the attitudes and practices related to these intentions. [from abstract]

Are Community Midwives Addressing the Inequities in Access to Skilled Birth Attendance in Punjab, Pakistan? Gender, Class and Social Exclusion

To address its high maternal mortality rate, in particular the inequities in access to maternal health care services, the government of Pakistan created a new cadre of community-based midwives. This study is designed to address a critical gap in our knowledge about whether this cadre of workers, operating in the private health care context, will meet the expectation to provide care to the poorest and most marginalized women. [adapted from author]

Biosafety Perspective of Clinical Laboratory Workers: A Profile of Pakistan

Although all occupational hazards are important, the risk of laboratory-associated infection in employees of clinical laboratories is greater than it is in many other occupations. This survey was conducted in Pakistan to assess the awareness of biosafety measures and the practices performed by laboratory technicians during their routine laboratory work. [adapted from introduction]

Engaging the Private Sector to Increase Tuberculosis Case Detection: An Impact Evaluation Study

In many countries with a high burden of tuberculosis, most patients receive treatment in the private sector. This study evaluates a multifaceted case-detection strategy in Karachi, Pakistan, targeting the private sector. [from abstract]

Problems and Issues in Implementing Innovative Curriculum in Developing Countries: The Pakistani Experience

The government of Pakistan identified 4 medical colleges for the introduction of a new medical curriculum, but despite concerted efforts, it was not implemented. The purpose of this research was to identify the barriers and reasons for delay in implementation of the curriculum and to assess the understanding of the stakeholders. [adapted from abstract]

Community Case Management of Severe Pneumonia with Oral Amoxicillin in children Aged 2-59 Months in Haripur District, Pakistan: A Cluster Randomised Trial

The objective of this study was to assess whether community case management by lady health workers with oral amoxicillin in children with severe pneumonia was equivalent to current standard of care. [from summary]

Paying Health Workers for Performance in Battagram District, Pakistan

This article presents the results of an evaluation of a project in Pakistan to contribute to learning about the design and implementation of pay-for-performance systems and their impact on health worker motivation. [adapted from abstract]

Training in Complementary Feeding Counselling of Healthcare Workers and Its Influence on Maternal Behaviours and Child Growth: a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial in Lahore, Pakistan

The objective of the study was to determine the efficacy of training health workers in nutrition counselling in enhancing their communication skills and performance, improving feeding practices, and reducing growth faltering in children aged 6-24 months. [from abstract]

Evaluation of Health Workforce Competence in Maternal and Neonatal Issues in Public Health Sector of Pakistan: an Assessment of Their Training Needs

The high perinatal and neonatal mortality rates in Pakistan are partially attributable to scarcity of trained skilled birth attendants and paucity of resources. Empowerment of health care providers with adequate knowledge and skills can serve as instrument of change. This training needs assessment analysis of the public health sector of Pakistan aims to recognize gaps in the processes and quality of MNCH care provided. [adapted from author]