scholarly journals Community engagement in Ebola outbreaks in sub-Saharan Africa and implications for COVID-19 control: A systematic review

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shadrack Osei Frimpong ◽  
Elijah Paintsil
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Sub Saharan

Abstract Objectives There is a paucity of systematic data on the specific roles community engagement played in preventing and managing the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We assessed community engagement's role, benefits, and mechanisms to understand its effect on EVD case detection, survival, and mortality in SSA. Implications for COVID-19 prevention and control were also highlighted. Methods We systematically searched for articles between 2010 and 2020 in databases such as MEDLINE and EMBASE. Study types included were randomised trials, quasi-experimental studies, observational studies, case series, and reports. Results A total of 903 records were identified for screening. 216 articles met the review criteria, 103 were initially selected, and 44 were included in the final review. Our findings show that effective community involvement during the EVD outbreak depended on the survival rates, testimonials of survivors, risk perception, and community leaders’ inclusion. Community-based interventions improved knowledge and attitudes, case findings, isolation efforts and treatment. Conclusion Although the studies included in this review were of highly variable quality, community engagement lessons learned from Ebola outbreaks can be applied to COVID-19 pandemic control in SSA.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Response in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons From Uganda

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. e46-e48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Lumu
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Disease Spread ◽  
East African ◽  
Limited Disease ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Response Team ◽  
Sub Saharan

ABSTRACTThe prolongation of the Ebola epidemic may have allowed some countries to prepare and respond to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. In Uganda, the surveillance structure built for Ebola virus disease (EVD) has become a pillar in the COVID-19 response. This testing and tracing apparatus has limited disease spread to clusters with zero mortality compared with the neighboring East African countries. As more sub-Saharan countries implement social distancing to contain the outbreak, the interventions should be phased and balanced with health risk and socioeconomic situation. However, having a decision-making matrix would better guide the response team. These initial lessons from EVD-experienced Uganda may be helpful to other countries in the region.

Awareness and Education on Viral Infections in Nigeria Using Edutainment

2017 ◽  
pp. 245-260
Author(s):  
Suleimanu Usaini ◽  
Tolulope Kayode-Adedeji ◽  
Olufunke Omole ◽  
Tunji Oyedepo
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Viral Infections ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Public Health Challenge ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Hepatitis C Viruses ◽  
Means Of Transmission

Researches in clinical and medical science have shown that Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Hepatitis B, and to some extent Hepatitis C viruses, constitute a major public health challenge in the Sub-Saharan Africa. This is without prejudice to the Ebola virus disease (EVD) that is more deadly than the other three put together, and had affected some countries in West Africa- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. There is little awareness and education via the mass media on some common viral infections in Nigeria like Hepatitis compared to HIV. Therefore, there is dire need for information, sensitisation and education on the viruses, means of transmission, preventive measures and also therapy. Edutainment is the fusion of education into entertainment programming which can come in form of drama, music, poetry and lots more, and it had been used as a platform to create awareness for positive reproductive health and HIV/AIDS by leading health organisations like WHO, USAID, DFID, SFH, and UNFPA. This paper therefore, examines why edutainment should be used and how it can be used to educate media audience in Nigeria on some viral infections that pose serious health risks and how they can live healthy lives.

Awareness and Education on Viral Infections in Nigeria Using Edutainment

2020 ◽  
pp. 699-714
Author(s):  
Suleimanu Usaini ◽  
Tolulope Kayode-Adedeji ◽  
Olufunke Omole ◽  
Tunji Oyedepo
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Viral Infections ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Public Health Challenge ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Hepatitis C Viruses ◽  
Means Of Transmission

Researches in clinical and medical science have shown that Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Hepatitis B, and to some extent Hepatitis C viruses, constitute a major public health challenge in the Sub-Saharan Africa. This is without prejudice to the Ebola virus disease (EVD) that is more deadly than the other three put together, and had affected some countries in West Africa- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. There is little awareness and education via the mass media on some common viral infections in Nigeria like Hepatitis compared to HIV. Therefore, there is dire need for information, sensitisation and education on the viruses, means of transmission, preventive measures and also therapy. Edutainment is the fusion of education into entertainment programming which can come in form of drama, music, poetry and lots more, and it had been used as a platform to create awareness for positive reproductive health and HIV/AIDS by leading health organisations like WHO, USAID, DFID, SFH, and UNFPA. This paper therefore, examines why edutainment should be used and how it can be used to educate media audience in Nigeria on some viral infections that pose serious health risks and how they can live healthy lives.

scholarly journals Ebola Virus Disease in sub-Saharan Africa: Addressing Gaps to Handle Future Outbreaks

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. p28
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Armstrong-Mensah ◽  
Bianca Tenney ◽  
Victoria Hawley
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Preparedness Plan ◽  
The North ◽  
Sub Saharan

Between 2014 and 2016, the three West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone experienced the deadliest Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in sub-Saharan Africa. Two years later, a tenth epidemic recurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), specifically in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces, which lasted until June 2020. Though they occurred in different countries, a review of how the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC were handled by the respective country governments, reveal gaps in disease detection, response and action due to lack of surveillance, an EVD preparedness plan, and weak health systems. This perspective discusses the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC, their effects, and draws attention to gaps that need to be addressed by these countries in order to be better prepared to handle future outbreaks. Acting on the proposed recommendations will not only benefit Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC in the future, but will be of benefit to EVD susceptible countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as we live in a global community where diseases are no respecters of boundaries.

scholarly journals Forty-two years of responding to Ebola virus outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa: a review

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. e001955 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sima Rugarabamu ◽  
Leonard Mboera ◽  
Mark Rweyemamu ◽  
Gaspary Mwanyika ◽  
Julius Lutwama ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Outbreak Management ◽  
The Past ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Control And Prevention ◽  
Sub Saharan

IntroductionEbola virus disease (EVD) is one of the deadliest haemorrhagic fevers affecting humans and non-human primates. Thirty-four outbreaks have been reported in Africa since it was first recognised in 1976. This review analysed 42 years of EVD outbreaks and identified various challenges and opportunities for its control and prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsA literature search of relevant articles on EVD was done in PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar electronic databases. Articles published from 1976 to 2019 were reviewed to document reports of EVD outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa. Data extraction focused on the year of outbreak, geographical spread, virus strain involved, number of cases and deaths, case fatality, and outbreak management. Analyses of trends in case fatality were performed by calculating ORs between times.ResultsIn the past four decades, a total of 34 EVD outbreaks affecting 34 356 cases and causing 14 823 deaths were reported in 11 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The overall case fatality rate (95% CI) was 66% (62 to 71) and did not change substantially over time (OR in 2019 vs 1976=1.6 (95% CI 1.5 to 1.8), p<0.001). The results of this review indicate that challenges to control EVD outbreaks are related to epidemiological, sociocultural and health system factors.ConclusionsSub-Saharan Africa continues to face considerable challenges in EVD control, whereby there are no significant changes in case fatality rates observed during the past four decades. Socioeconomic and cultural processes need to be critically considered to shape the community behaviours that lead to exposure to EVD outbreaks. Areas that need to be addressed to prevent future EVD outbreaks include a broad-based, one-health approach, effective communication, social mobilisation, and strengthening of the health systems.

scholarly journals Syndromic detectability of haemorrhagic fever outbreaks

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma E. Glennon ◽  
Freya L. Jephcott ◽  
Alexandra Oti ◽  
Colin J. Carlson ◽  
Fausto A. Bustos Carillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Syndromic Surveillance ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Case Definitions ◽  
Clinical Criteria ◽  
Health Infrastructure ◽  
Sub Saharan

AbstractLate detection of emerging viral transmission allows outbreaks to spread uncontrolled, the devastating consequences of which are exemplified by recent epidemics of Ebola virus disease. Especially challenging in places with sparse healthcare, limited diagnostic capacity, and public health infrastructure, syndromes with overlapping febrile presentations easily evade early detection. There is a clear need for evidence-based and context-dependent tools to make syndromic surveillance more efficient. Using published data on symptom presentation and incidence of 21 febrile syndromes, we develop a novel algorithm for aetiological identification of case clusters and demonstrate its ability to identify outbreaks of dengue, malaria, typhoid fever, and meningococcal disease based on clinical data from past outbreaks. We then apply the same algorithm to simulated outbreaks to systematically estimate the syndromic detectability of outbreaks of all 21 syndromes. We show that while most rare haemorrhagic fevers are clinically distinct from most endemic fevers in sub-Saharan Africa, VHF detectability is limited even under conditions of perfect syndromic surveillance. Furthermore, even large clusters (20+ cases) of filoviral diseases cannot be routinely distinguished by the clinical criteria present in their case definitions alone; we show that simple syndromic case definitions are insensitive to rare fevers across most of the region. We map the estimated detectability of Ebola virus disease across sub-Saharan Africa, based on geospatially mapped estimates of malaria, dengue, and other fevers with overlapping syndromes. We demonstrate “hidden hotspots” where Ebola virus is likely to spill over from wildlife and also transmit undetected for many cases. Such places may represent both the locations of past unobserved outbreaks and potential future origins for larger epidemics. Finally, we consider the implications of these results for improved locally relevant syndromic surveillance and the consequences of syndemics and under-resourced health infrastructure for infectious disease emergence.

scholarly journals Community-driven citizen science approach to explore cardiovascular disease risk perception, and develop prevention advocacy strategies in sub-Saharan Africa: a programme protocol

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kufre Joseph Okop ◽  
Kathy Murphy ◽  
Estelle Victoria Lambert ◽  
Kiya Kedir ◽  
Hailemichael Getachew ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Cardiovascular Disease Risk ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Sub Saharan

Abstract Background In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), which experiences a disproportionately high cardiovascular disease (CVD) burden, population-based screening and prevention measures are hampered by low levels of knowledge about CVD and associated risk factors, and inaccurate perceptions of severity of risk. Methods This protocol describes the planned processes for implementing community-driven participatory research, using a citizen science method to explore CVD risk perceptions and to develop community-specific advocacy and prevention strategies in the rural and urban SSA settings. Multi-disciplinary research teams in four selected African countries will engage with and train community members living in rural and urban communities as citizen scientists to facilitate conceptualization, co-designing of research, data gathering, and co-creation of knowledge that can lead to a shared agenda to support collaborative participation in community-engaged science. The emphasis is on robust community engagement, using mobile technology to support data gathering, participatory learning, and co-creation of knowledge and disease prevention advocacy. Discussion Contextual processes applied and lessons learned in specific settings will support redefining or disassembling boundaries in participatory science to foster effective implementation of sustainable prevention intervention programmes in Low- and Middle-income countries.

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