Journal Articles

How can the world improve the health systems in low- and middle-income countries to effectively manage future outbreaks? Recently, the Royal College of Physicians launched a new partnership with the West African College of Physicians to curtail the effects of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in the region. We believe that strengthened health systems, skilled human resources for health and national ownership of problems are key to effective management of outbreaks such as Ebola Virus Disease. [from abstract]

The study was designed to determine the attitude and practices of health care workers towards HIV positive patients at the Federal Medical Centre Owo , Ondo State, Nigeria. [from abstract]

Trending in Nigeria is the conventional view that medical practitioners should look after patients, while administrators look after organizations. Yet several pioneering healthcare institutions have turned this assumption on its head and achieved outstanding performance in the UK and in central Europe. This can be replicated in Nigeria through the adoption of clinical leadership practices and the restructuring of the healthcare system in Nigeria, which has been characterized by strike actions from medical
practioners. [from abstract]

The following case study offers a look at some of these basic ingredients and approaches that can help to achieve both scale and sustainability in the African context. We focus in particular on how closing persistent gaps increases the likelihood of mainstreaming mHealth initiatives into health systems. [from introduction]

Provision of reproductive health (RH) services is a minimum standard of health care in humanitarian settings; however access to these services is often limited. This systematic review, one component of a global evaluation of RH in humanitarian settings, sought to explore the evidence regarding RH services provided in humanitarian settings and to determine if programs are being evaluated. [from abstract]

Complications of abortion are one of the leading causes of maternal mortality worldwide, along with hemorrhage, sepsis, and hypertensive diseases of pregnancy. In Afghanistan little data exist on the capacity of the health system to provide post-abortion care (PAC). This paper presents findings from a national emergency obstetric and neonatal care needs assessment related to PAC, with the aim of providing insight into the current situation and recommendations for improvement of PAC services. [from abstract]

As part of a larger research project that explores whether and how gender equity considerations are taken into account in the reconstruction and reform of health systems in conflict-affected and post conflict countries, we undertook a narrative literature review based on the questions “How gender sensitive is the reconstruction and reform of health systems in post conflict countries, and what factors need to be taken into consideration to build a gender equitable health system?” We used the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) six building blocks as a framework for our analysis; these six b

As in many developing countries, lack of reliable data and grossly inadequate appreciation and use of available information in planning and management of health services were two main weaknesses of the health information systems in Malawi. As a first step towards conceptualization and design of the system, a minimum set of indicators was identified and a strategy was formulated for establishing a system in the country. [from abstract]

Since responsibility for health services management lies at the district (sub-national) level, this study aimed to assess the extent to which the HIV M&E system is integrated with the overall health system M&E function at district level. This study describes implementation of the HIV M&E system, determines the extent to which it is integrated with the district health information system (DHIS), and evaluates factors influencing HIV M&E integration. [from abstract]

The health seeking behaviour of a community determines how they use health services. Utilisation of health facilities can be influenced by the cost of services, distance to health facilities, cultural beliefs, level of education and health facility inadequacies such as stock-out of drugs.
This study will assess the health seeking practices and challenges in utilising health facilities in a rural community in Wakiso district, Uganda. [from abstract]

This study aimed to document LGBT people’s experiences in SA public sector health care, including access to HIV counselling, testing and treatment, to analyse to what extend LGBT people’s right to health is actioned. It also investigates strategies for LGBT people to seek resolution and create accountability when experiencing health rights violations. [from abstract]

The Government of Enugu State plans to offer free perinatal services at the primary health care (PHC) centers in order to improve perinatal outcomes in the state, but it was not clear whether there are skilled birth attendants (SBAs) at the PHC level to implement the program. This study aims to determine whether there are sufficient numbers of SBAs in the public PHC system in Enugu State of Nigeria. [adapted from abstract]

‘Dual practice’, or multiple job holding, generally involves public sector-based health workers taking additional work in the private sector. There has been little conceptual or empirical development of the relationship between dual practice and retention. This article helps begin to fill this gap, drawing on empirical evidence from a qualitative
study focusing on South African specialists. [from abstract]

Recording nursing reports is considered as a quality assurance tool for patients and nurses. Nowadays,the presence of electronic health record systems is an indicator of development. Studies on advantages and disadvantages of the electronic and manual recording methods have shown different results. In this study, electronic and manual recording of nursing reports were compared from the perspective of nurses. [from abstract]

This study aimed to determine the attitudes of students towards learning method based on problem solving as a student-centered and their satisfaction from the student-centered learning method in the medical students of Mashhad University of Medical Science.

To assess the PMTCT program achievement in Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso. [from abstract]

Health surveillance assistants (HSAs) in Malawi have provided community case management (CCM) since 2008; however, program monitoring remains challenging. Mobile technology holds the potential to improve data, but rigorous assessments are few. This study tested the validity of collecting CCM implementation strength indicators through mobile phone interviews with HSAs. [from abstract]

In this paper, the authors discuss a mobile interactive messaging system that would enable patients to send preliminary symptoms to the health workers in public hospitals via SMS. The information gathered is stored in database residing at the health facility, which will serve as a reference point to the health workers whenever responding to the messages received from patients. [from abstract]

Even after the launch of family planning program in Kenya, in 1967, contraceptive use among adolescents has remained below 10 percent while child bearing has increased from 2 percent at age 15 to 36 percent at age 19. To understand the roles of perceptions and barriers on contraceptive use, a mixed method study design was applied to a conceptual framework that operationalized these concepts using data from different sources of social interactions in Nairobi, Kenya. [from abstract]

Despite the existence of modern health facilities in Nigeria, over 58 percent of deliveries take place at home. As outcomes of pregnancy and their sequelae are purely left to the providence of women in many rural communities, the place of delivery is a great determinant of maternal and child morbidity and mortality. [from abstract]

This study found that the hospitals attempted to make significant use of Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) approach (including natural surveillance, natural access control, territorial concern, and management & maintenance) but that CPTED usage was at least partially ineffective because of poor implementation of its principles and because employees were not sufficiently educated in CPTED to exploit the CPTED engineering and design features. [from abstract]

This paper is a comparative analysis between China’s and Myanmar’s health systems, viewed through the WHO’s six building blocs of health systems: service delivery, health workforce, health information, access to essential medicines, health financing, leadership or governance.

African medical schools have historically turned to northern partners for technical assistance and resources to strengthen their education and research programmes. In 2010, this paradigm shifted when the United States Government brought forward unprecedented resources to support African medical schools. The grant, entitled the Medical Education Partnership Initiative (MEPI) triggered a number of south-south collaborations between medical schools
in Africa. This paper examines the goals of these partnerships and their impact on medical education and health workforce planning. [from abstract]

Mental health system reform is urgently needed in Gaza to respond to increasing mental health consequences of conflict. Evidence from mental health systems research is needed to inform decision-making. We aimed to provide new knowledge on current mental health policy and legislation, and services and resource use, in Gaza to identify quality gaps and
areas for urgent intervention. [from abstract]

Sensitivity training of front-line African health care workers (HCWs) attending to men who have sex with men (MSM) is actively promoted through national HIV prevention programming in Kenya.

The research objectives were to (1) describe the current and future roles of hospital librarians and the challenges they face and (2) find evidence supporting the hypothesis that librarians are essential to hospitals in achieving the organizations’ mission-critical goals. [from abstract]

Mobile health (mHealth) applications, such as innovative electronic forms on smartphones, could potentially improve the performance of health care workers and health systems in developing countries. However, contextual evidence on health workers’ barriers and motivating factors that may influence large-scale implementation of such interfaces for health care delivery is scarce. [from abstract]

The policy on gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) in health sector of Nepal is formulated in 2009 targeting toward poor, vulnerable, marginalized social and ethnic groups. Gender inequality and social discrimination are a social problem that affect on individual health finally. The main objective of this paper is to critically analysis and evaluates the Government’s strategy on health sector gender equality and social inclusion in Nepal. [from abstract]

The purpose of this article is to answer the following questions: What constitutes coercion in family planning policy and program management and how do we use lessons of the past to prevent future instances of coercion? [from abstract]

Contraceptive prevalence is very low in Senegal, particularly among young women. Greater knowledge is needed about the barriers young women face to using contraceptives, including barriers imposed by health providers. [from abstract]