scholarly journals Ethics, pandemic and environment; looking at the future of low middle income countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Faouzia Tanveer ◽  
Ali Talha Khalil ◽  
Muhammad Ali ◽  
Zabta Khan Shinwari
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Preparedness ◽  
Health Care Systems ◽  
Shared Responsibility ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
Effective Response ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries

Abstract COVID-19 which started in Wuhan, China and swiftly expanded geographically worldwide, including to Low to Middle Income Countries (LMICs). This in turn raised numerous ethical concerns in preparedness, knowledge sharing, intellectual property rights, environmental health together with the serious constraints regarding readiness of health care systems in LMICs to respond to this enormous public health crisis. From the restrictions on public freedom and burgeoning socio-economic impacts to the rationing of scarce medical resources, the spread of COVID-19 is an extraordinary ethical dilemma for resource constrained nations with less developed health and research systems. In the current crisis, scientific knowledge and technology has an important role to play in effective response. Emergency preparedness is a shared responsibility of all countries with a moral obligation to support each other. This review discusses the ethical concerns regarding the national capacities and response strategies in LMICs to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the deep link between the environment and the increasing risk of pandemics.

scholarly journals Structural Barriers to Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: The Urgent Need for Scaling Up

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo Cazap ◽  
Ian Magrath ◽  
T. Peter Kingham ◽  
Ahmed Elzawawy
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Access To Care ◽  
Cancer Care ◽  
Health Care Systems ◽  
Diagnosis And Treatment ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Care Systems ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Noncommunicable diseases are now recognized by the United Nations and WHO as a major public health crisis. Cancer is a main part of this problem, and health care systems are facing a great challenge to improve cancer care, control costs, and increase systems efficiency. The disparity in access to care and outcomes between high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries is staggering. The reasons for this disparity include cost, access to care, manpower and training deficits, and a lack of awareness in the lay and medical communities. Diagnosis and treatment play an important role in this complex environment. In different regions and countries of the world, a variety of health care systems are in place, but most of them are fragmented or poorly coordinated. The need to scale up cancer care in the low- and middle-income countries is urgent, and this article reviews many of the structural mechanisms of the problem, describes the current situation, and proposes ways for improvement. The organization of cancer services is also included in the analysis.

scholarly journals Rolling out COVID-19 vaccine: half the battle won

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alishba Adnan ◽  
Chanchal Maheshwari ◽  
Syed Muhammad Ashraf Jahangeer
Keyword(s):  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Vaccine Uptake ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Safe Delivery ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
Tight Rope ◽  
The Uk

According to the World Bank forecast COVID19 economic consequences have been estimated as the deepest recession since the Second World War. To date COVID19 has claimed 1.4 million lives, leaving millions in varying levels of morbidity and emerges as a bigger problem in the high income than in the low middle income countries. The only hope to put a stop to this monster and go back to the normal is the man's old friend, the vaccines. Extraordinary circumstances require extraordinary measures and we have seen that the development of vaccines which was usually thought as a years of business is being prepared and ready to be rolled out under ten months of concentric efforts. A certain percentage of adverse effects are expected from any medication and the same is true for vaccines. However even within the expected numbers of any untoward effects from vaccines, the same are highlighted and become under media limelight for no scientific reason. In this regard manageing mthe mass media is imperative. In the recent history of infections and vaccines, the world has seen both causal and spurious adverse relationships claimed to be associated with vaccines. Whatever the truth was, news of vaccines causing adverse reactions can not only affect the uptake of the very vaccine itself, but can also avert people to go for other routine vaccinations. In the low and middle income countries of the world this could prove as an impending community health disaster. In a country like the UK the Wakefield reports caused decline in the vaccine uptake and a surge in the infections, so what worse we can be expected in other parts of the world. Considering the tight rope of a newly developed vaccine administration in the first stage, ‘the first few thousands’ in the population would be a make or break situation, specially in the low middle income countries where rumors spread faster than anything. In the second stage, targeting a bigger population for vaccine delivery, diligent planning at both macro and micro levels would be required to avoid problems related to vaccine storage, safe delivery, administration and follow up of the vaccine receivers. This pandemic provided us with an opportunity to uncover our potential in a time constraint Global health crisis. The precious achievements of scientists and vaccine manufacturers in this regard must be capitalized upon and be secured from mishaps and mismanagement. Continuous...

The Impact of Covid 19 on Pregnant Women and Child Health

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (SPL1) ◽  
pp. 1367-1373
Author(s):  
Nikhil Sanjay Mujbaile ◽  
Smita Damke
Keyword(s):  
Social Issues ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Separation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Child Health ◽  
General Wellbeing

The Covid illness (COVID-19) pandemic has spread rapidly all through the world and has had a drawn-out impact. The Pandemic has done incredible damage to society and made genuine mental injury to numerous individuals. Mental emergencies frequently cause youngsters to deliver sentiments of relinquishment, despondency, insufficiency, and fatigue and even raise the danger of self-destruction. Youngsters with psychological instabilities are particularly powerless during the isolate and colonial removing period. Convenient and proper assurances are expected to forestall the event of mental and social issues. The rising advanced applications and wellbeing administrations, for example, telehealth, web-based media, versatile wellbeing, and far off intuitive online instruction can connect the social separation and backing mental and conduct wellbeing for youngsters. Because of the mental advancement qualities of youngsters, this investigation additionally outlines intercessions on the mental effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Further difficulties in Low Middle-Income Countries incorporate the failure to actualize successful general wellbeing estimates, for example, social separating, hand cleanliness, definitive distinguishing proof of contaminated individuals with self-disconnection and widespread utilization of covers The aberrant impacts of the Pandemic on youngster wellbeing are of extensive concern, including expanding neediness levels, upset tutoring, absence of admittance to the class taking care of plans, decreased admittance to wellbeing offices and breaks in inoculation and other kid wellbeing programs. Kept tutoring is critical for kids in Low Middle-Income Countries. Arrangement of safe situations is mainly testing in packed asset obliged schools. 

Risk Factors of Mortality Among Patients with Stroke in Low Middle-Income Countries:  A Series of 180 Patients

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larrey Kamabu ◽  
Hervé Monka Lekuya ◽  
Bienvenu Muhindo Kasusula ◽  
Nicole Kavugho Mutimani ◽  
Louange Maha Kathaka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries

scholarly journals Triaging and adaptations of surveillance of cancer services in the COVID pandemic

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
Shirley Lewis ◽  
Lavanya Gurram ◽  
Umesh Velu ◽  
Krishna Sharan
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Clinical Examination ◽  
Cancer Care ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Cancer Services ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries

Abstract Introduction: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has significantly challenged the access to cancer care and follow-up for a patient with cancer. Methods: Based on published literature and our experiences, it is reasonable to presume that clinical examination and follow-up visits have been significantly curtailed worldwide in order to adhere to the new norms during the pandemic. Although telephonic and telemedicine consultations may help bridge a few gaps, completely dispensing with in-person consultation has its challenges, especially in low middle-income countries. Telephonic consultations could facilitate triaging of ambulatory cancer patients and allocation of face-to-face consultations for high priority patients. Conclusions: We propose a telephonic consultation-based triaging approach for ambulatory cancer patients in order to identify those needing in-hospital consultations.

scholarly journals Exploration of recovery of people living with severe mental illness (SMI) in low/middle-income countries (LMICs): a scoping review

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e045005
Author(s):  
Fadia Gamieldien ◽  
Roshan Galvaan ◽  
Bronwyn Myers ◽  
Zarina Syed ◽  
Katherine Sorsdahl
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Severe Mental Illness ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Flow Diagram ◽  
Personal Recovery ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Provider Perspectives ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries

ObjectiveTo examine the literature on how recovery of people with severe mental illness (SMI) is conceptualised in low/middle-income countries (LMICs), and in particular what factors are thought to facilitate recovery.DesignScoping review.Data sources and eligibilityWe searched 14 electronic databases, hand searched citations and consulted with experts during the period May–December 2019. Eligible studies were independently screened for inclusion and exclusion by two reviewers. Unresolved discrepancies were referred to a third reviewer.Data extraction and synthesisAll bibliographical data and study characteristics were extracted using a data charting form. Selected studies were analysed through a thematic analysis emerging from extracted data.ResultsThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses flow diagram offers a summary of the results: 4201 titles, 1530 abstracts and 109 full-text articles were screened. Ten articles were selected for inclusion: two from Turkey, two from India, and one each from China, Swaziland, Indonesia, Egypt, South Africa and Vietnam. Although most studies used qualitative methods, data collection and sampling methods were heterogeneous. One study reported on service provider perspectives while the rest provided perspectives from a combination of service users and caregivers. Three themes emerged from the data analysis. First, studies frame recovery as a personal journey occurring along a continuum. Second, there was an emphasis on social relationships as a facilitator of recovery. Third, spirituality emerged as both a facilitator and an indicator of recovery. These themes were not mutually exclusive and some overlap exists.ConclusionAlthough there were commonalities with how high-income countries describe recovery, we also found differences in conceptualisation. These differences in how recovery was understood reflect the importance of framing the personal recovery concept in relation to local needs and contextual issues found in LMICs. This review highlighted the current sparse evidence base and the need to better understand recovery from SMI in LMICs.

scholarly journals Universal newborn hearing screening in South Africa: a single-centre study

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. e000976
Author(s):  
Ayanda Gina ◽  
Nadja F Bednarczuk ◽  
Asitha Jayawardena ◽  
Peter Rea ◽  
Qadeer Arshad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Auditory Brainstem ◽  
Hearing Screening ◽  
Newborn Hearing Screening ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries ◽  
Universal Newborn Hearing Screening ◽  
Newborn Hearing ◽  
Single Centre Study ◽  
Societal Level

Hearing screening for newborn babies is an established protocol in many high-income countries. Implementing such screening has yielded significant socioeconomic advantages at both an individual and societal level. This has yet to permeate low/middle-income countries (LMIC). Here, we illustrate how newborn hearing screening needs to be contextually adapted for effective utilisation and implementation in an LMIC. Specifically, this advocates the use of auditory brainstem testing as the first-line approach. We propose that such adaptation serves to maximise clinical efficacy and community participation at a reduced cost.

scholarly journals Erythropoietin monotherapy for neuroprotection after neonatal encephalopathy in low-to-middle income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phoebe Ivain ◽  
Paolo Montaldo ◽  
Aamir Khan ◽  
Ramyia Elagovan ◽  
Constance Burgod ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Neonatal Encephalopathy ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Outcomes ◽  
Term Infants ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Pooled Data ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Low Middle Income Countries ◽  
Near Term

Abstract Objective We examined whether erythropoietin monotherapy improves neurodevelopmental outcomes in near-term and term infants with neonatal encephalopathy (NE) in low-middle income countries (LMICs). Methods We searched Pubmed, Embase, and Web of Science databases to identify studies that used erythropoietin (1500–12,500 units/kg/dose) or a derivative to treat NE. Results Five studies, with a total of 348 infants in LMICs, were retrieved. However, only three of the five studies met the primary outcome of death or neuro-disability at 18 months of age or later. Erythropoietin reduced the risk of death (during the neonatal period and at follow-up) or neuro-disability at 18 months or later (p < 0.05). Death or neuro-disability occurred in 27.6% of the erythropoietin group and 49.7% of the comparison group (risk ratio 0.56 (95% CI: 0.42–0.75)). Conclusion The pooled data suggest that erythropoietin monotherapy may improve outcomes after NE in LMICs where therapeutic hypothermia is not available.

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