scholarly journals 1669. Trends in Authorship for Infectious Disease Research Conducted in Low-Income Countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S610-S611
Author(s):  
Chelsea E Modlin ◽  
Kimberly Powell ◽  
Russell R Kempker

Abstract Background Research capacity in low-income countries (LICs) plays an important role in strengthening national healthcare systems and addressing local health priorities. Research in infectious diseases is especially important as they comprise five of the top 10 causes of death in LICs. While academic collaborations between high-income countries (HICs) and LICs offer many benefits, they also risk structural and professional imbalances. This study explores research capacity as a function of first or last authorship and funding for research conducted in LICs that is published in high-impact infectious disease journals. Methods A literature search using the abstract database Scopus was completed for original research conducted within LICs or using samples collected from LIC subjects published between 1998 – 2017 in Clinical Infectious Diseases, Journal of Infectious Diseases, and Open Forum Infectious Diseases. Primary outcomes included the number of LIC first and last authors compared with HIC authors over time. Secondary outcomes included the geographic distribution of research and the proportion of research financed by LICs. Results A total of 1380 articles were identified of which 20% had LIC first authors and 21% had first authors with dual LIC/HIC affiliations. For last authors, 13% were affiliated with a LIC and 15% had dual LIC/HIC affiliation. HIC researchers compiled the majority of first and last authors regardless of geography (Figure 1). The number of studies conducted in LICs increased over the 20-year timeframe (Figure 2) but is attributed to an increase in articles with HIC authors. The number of LIC authors remained unchanged resulting in a decreasing proportion of LIC authors. Only 4% of articles received funding from a LIC; however, 79% of these studies were authored by LIC researchers vs. 39% of studies funded by HIC sources. Conclusion There is a growing appreciation for international HIC/LIC research collaborations with the objective to reduce the burden of infectious diseases that disproportionately affect low-income settings. However, with this increased attention comes the responsibility to improve LIC research capacity. This includes promoting LIC researchers via authorship and supporting sustainability with funding that highlights LIC priorities. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

Author(s):  
Joia S. Mukherjee ◽  
Paul E. Farmer

The burden of infectious disease cases and deaths falls most heavily on low-income countries. This chapter describes structural inequities and the disproportionate burden of infectious diseases on the poor and provides many examples. It addresses roots and underlying factors, including inadequate support for public works and infrastructure, inadequate protection of social and economic rights, poverty, violence, and inadequate access to medical care and antibiotics. The authors assert that addressing the differential prevalence of infectious diseases requires a holistic approach that incorporates the social determinants of health and promotes prevention and treatment of infectious diseases. The chapter describes in detail the global AIDS movement and its accomplishments. The authors conclude that human suffering due to infectious disease can be alleviated if social injustice is comprehensively addressed. A text box describes a man with tuberculosis who eventually dies of the disease because of inadequate access to quality medical care and necessary medications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 10783
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Goniewicz ◽  
Frederick M. Burkle ◽  
Simon Horne ◽  
Marta Borowska-Stefańska ◽  
Szymon Wiśniewski ◽  
...  

Armed conflicts degrade established healthcare systems, which typically manifests as a resurgence of preventable infectious diseases. While 70% of deaths globally are now from non-communicable disease; in low-income countries, respiratory infections, diarrheal illness, malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDs are all in the top 10 causes of death. The burden of these infectious diseases is exacerbated by armed conflict, translating into even more dramatic long-term consequences. This rapid evidence review searched electronic databases in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Of 381 identified publications, 73 were included in this review. Several authors indicate that the impact of infectious diseases increases in wars and armed conflicts due to disruption to surveillance and response systems that were often poorly developed to begin with. Although the true impact of conflict on infectious disease spread is not known and requires further research, the link between them is indisputable. Current decision-making management systems are insufficient and only pass the baton to the next unwary generation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christiane Horwood ◽  
Sphindile Mapumulo ◽  
Lyn Haskins ◽  
Vaughn John ◽  
Silondile Luthuli ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Globally, increasing numbers of higher education institutions (HEIs) in non-English-speaking countries have adopted English as a medium of instruction (EMI), because of the perception that this provides opportunities to attract high-calibre students and academic staff, and engage with the international research community. We report an evaluation of a North–South-South collaboration to develop health research capacity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by establishing a postgraduate programme in nutritional epidemiology at the Kinshasa School of Public Health (KSPH), where EMI was adopted. We report experiences and perceptions of stakeholders, facilitators and students about using EMI. Methods In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted between October and December 2019 among convenience sampled stakeholders (8), facilitators (11) and students (12) involved in the programme from all three partner institutions (University of Kinshasa; University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; University of Bergen, Norway). Interviews were conducted in participants’ language of preference (English or French), audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and translated into English when required. Analysis employed a thematic approach. Results Most participants viewed EMI positively, reporting that studying in English created opportunities to access relevant literature, improve interactions with the scientific community and advance their careers. As a result of adopting EMI, some students had opportunities to present research findings at international conferences and publish their research in English. English-speaking researchers from partner institutions were able to participate in supervision of students’ research. However, inadequate English competency, particularly among students, was challenging, with some students reporting being unable to understand or interact in class, which negatively affected their academic performance. Further, EMI created barriers at KSPH among academic staff who were not proficient in English, leading to poor participation among non-English-speaking staff and lack of integration with other postgraduate programmes. Participants suggested additional English language support for EMI. Conclusion Partnerships between HEIs could be a powerful tool to develop research capacity in low-income countries in line with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. EMI could be a solution to language barriers faced by many such partnerships, but wide-ranging support to develop English proficiency among staff and students is essential to ensure that the challenges do not outweigh the benefits.


Author(s):  
Md Hasanuzzaman ◽  
Md Hafizur Rahman ◽  
Md Shafiqul Islam Khan ◽  
Musammet Rasheda Begum ◽  
Farjana Alam ◽  
...  

Background: Over 200 million under-five-children born in low-income countries are at risk of not reaching their development potential and infectious diseases are the leading cause of development deficits in these regions.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate personal and household hygiene practices among 154 mothers and their association with the incidence of infectious diseases among 167 children aged 6 months to 59 months in Patuakhali district, Bangladesh.Results: Only 13.6% of the mothers had proper hand washing knowledge. Besides, 14% and 53.9% of the mothers washed their hands with soap and only with water respectively before feeding their child. About 68.2% of mothers prepared food on the ground and half (49.5%) of the toilet did not have a hand washing location beside it. The risk of childhood infectious disease was significantly associated with hand washing of mothers before feeding a child (OR: 2.3, 95% CI: 1.5-4.1, p<0.05) and hand washing of child before eating (OR: 3.4, 95% CI: 1.8-5.7, p<0.05).Conclusions: Hand washing agents were inadequate and compliance to hand washing was poor. Therefore, the continuous focus is needed on the mother's awareness construction to increase the compliance to hand washing practice among mothers as well as their child with soap, especially during child feeding.


Subject Cancer burden in Africa. Significance Cancer is a growing public health threat in low-income countries, including African states. With the increase in urbanisation, population growth and improving mortality rates, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that by 2020, 16 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed each year, with 70% of those in low-income countries. However, the rise in cancer rates has not been met with changes to aid funding. Global health priorities continue to emphasise infectious diseases, and African countries remain ill-equipped to prevent, diagnose or treat cancer. Impacts Rising consumption of processed foods in urban areas will contribute to an overall rise in non-communicable diseases. African countries are some of the fastest growing markets for tobacco companies as health awareness rises in traditional markets. Global brewers will enjoy significant market expansion in Africa, contributing to increased alcohol consumption. Despite the economic benefits, delayed childbearing and lower fertility in women is set to increase the incidence of breast cancer.


Author(s):  
Awa Marie Coll Seck ◽  
Ibrahima Seck

Infectious diseases (IDs) remain a major public health challenge in low-income countries (LICs) despite several striking successes and improvements in their control during the last decades. This includes the eradication of smallpox and rinderpest, and several other pathogens are on the edge of eradication, such as polio or guinea worm. It also concerns other high-profile pathogens that are increasingly more controlled, such as malaria, which has strongly diminished in several regions or measles for which transmission has been strongly impacted by childhood vaccination programs....


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Haijun ◽  
Jean Pierre Namahoro

Abstract Background: Infectious diseases are predominantly within poor population living in low-income countries, while are either treatable or preventable with existing medicines in the first occurring. The highlighted cause is some government choose to spend national budget on several projects do not coincide the basic needs and demands of the population. The objectives of this study were to 1) compare the performance between new cases and deaths caused by diseases; 2) show the effect of gross national income (GNI) in the mortalities reduction, and 3) assess potential evolution in eradicating mortalities in East African countries. Method: WHO database contains data on several responses (new cases of Malaria, Neonates protected at birth against neonatal tetanus, mortalities from tuberculosis among HIV-negative people and new cases of leprosy) recorded from 2004 to 2015. IMB SPSS modeler and Origin 8 were used especially, One-way ANOVA and Pearson’s correlation to achieve the objectives of the study. Results: The p-values for either Levene’ and Brown-Forsythe compared with 0.05 significant level for testing the performance between countries, correlation between GNI with leprosy is -0.5 to -1.0, in five countries, with TB is closer t0 -1.0 in four countries, with deaths from Malaria, is -0.5 to -1.0 in three countries, and new cases from Malaria and protected neonates is 0.5 to 1.0. Conclusion: The relationship between GNI and new cases and deaths indicate the weak effect of GNI in the process of eradicating mortalities, therefore, the government should prioritize the healthcare and use a national budget to monitoring the all complications related to infectious diseases. Key wards: infectious diseases, eradicating mortalities, gross national income


2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Roche ◽  
Hélène Broutin ◽  
Marc Choisy ◽  
Sylvain Godreuil ◽  
Guillaume Constantin de Magny ◽  
...  

Policy Papers ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  

The Fund’s existing facilities for low-income countries (LICs) provide a vehicle for the speedy provision of financial assistance to member countries hit by natural disasters, either through the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) or through augmentation of the funding already being provided through other facilities such as the Standby or Extended Credit Facilities. The quick disbursement of funds strengthens national financial capacity, including external payments capacity, to tackle relief and recovery challenges. To address catastrophic disasters, the Fund created a mechanism in 2010 to provide additional relief to its poorest and most vulnerable member countries to help meet their exceptional balance of payments needs. Under this mechanism, the Fund can provide grants from a trust fund—the Post Catastrophe Debt Relief (PCDR) trust—that are used to pay off debt service falling due to the Fund. These grants ease pressures on the member’s balance of payments and create financial space by reducing its debt service burden. This paper proposes reforms to this mechanism to cover situations where the member is experiencing an epidemic of an infectious disease that constitutes a significant threat to lives, economic activity, and international commerce across countries.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amira J. Zaylaa ◽  
Mohamad Rashid ◽  
Mounir Shaib ◽  
Imad El Majzoub

Preterm infants encounter an abrupt delivery before their complete maturity during the third trimester of pregnancy. Polls anticipate an increase in the rates of preterm infants for 2025, especially in middle- and low-income countries. Despite the abundance of intensive care methods for preterm infants, such as, but not limited to, commercial, transport, embrace warmer, radiant warmer, and Kangaroo Mother Care methods, they are either expensive, lack the most essential requirements or specifications, or lack the maternal-preterm bond. This drove us to carry this original research and innovative idea of developing a new 3D printed prototype of a Handy preterm infant incubator. We aim to provide the most indispensable intensive care with the lowest cost, to bestow low-income countries with the Handy incubator’s care, preserve the maternal -preterm’s bond, and diminish the rate of mortality. Biomedical features, electronics, and biocompatible materials were utilized. The design was simulated, the prototype was 3D printed, and the outcomes were tested and evaluated. Simulation results showed the best fit for the Handy incubator’s components. Experimental results showed the 3D-printed prototype and the time elapsed to obtain it. Evaluation results revealed that the overall performance of Kangaroo Mother Care and the embrace warmer was 75 ± 1.4% and 66.7 ± 1.5%, respectively, while the overall performance of our Handy incubator was 91.7 ± 1.6%, thereby our cost-effective Handy incubator surpassed existing intensive care methods. The future step is associating the Handy incubator with more specifications and advancements.


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