scholarly journals Experiences of Professional Nurses Regarding the Implementation of a Central Chronic Medicine Dispensing and Distribution Program at Primary Health Care Facilities in South Africa.

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 477-483
Author(s):  
Livhuwani Muthelo ◽  
Tshinanne Nemagumoni ◽  
Tebogo Maria Mothiba ◽  
Arthur Thabo Phukubje ◽  
Linneth Nkateko Mabila
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Health Care Facilities ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Professional Nurses

Background: The Central Chronic Medicine Dispensing and Distribution (CCMDD) program is a new program initiated by the Department of Health, South Africa to provide an alternative chronic medicine access program to public sector patients. The program is designed to improve access to required medicine, especially to patients who are on chronic medicines while assisting with the decongestion of public clinics. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to determine the experiences of professional nurses regarding the implementation of the Central Chronic Medicine Dispensing and Distribution program. Methods: A qualitative descriptive, phenomenological and exploratory design research was conducted to determine the experiences of professional nurses regarding the implementation of the central chronic medicine dispensing and distribution program. Purposive sampling was used to select 15 professional nurses who participated in the study. Data were collected through a semi-structured one-on-one interview method, using a scheduled interview guide. The study was conducted in three Primary Health Care (PHC) facilities in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, where professional nurses dispensed medicine to patients through the CCMDD programme. Data were analysed using Tesch’s method. Lincoln and Guba's four strategies were applied to ensure trustworthiness. Results: The findings of this study reveals that proffessional nurses in Vhembe experienced challenges with the implementation of the CCMDD program; such as late delivery of medication, lack of parcel tracking, patients receiving collection notification messages late, incorrect medication being issued to the patients, lack of pick up points in rural areas, and lack of patients’ data availability in the clinic facilities. Conclusion: South Africa is in the process of developing and implementing universal health care for all (National Health Insurance). The effective implementation of the CCMDD program should ensure equal access for all patients to their medication, in both rural and urban areas.

scholarly journals Effects of increased nurses’ workload on quality documentation of patient information at selected Primary Health Care facilities in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province

Curationis ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rhulani C. Shihundla ◽  
Rachel T. Lebese ◽  
Maria S. Maputle
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Patient Information ◽  
Health Care Facilities ◽  
Hiv And Aids ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Case Record ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Professional Nurses ◽  
Vhembe District

Background: Recording of information on multiple documents increases professional nurses’ responsibilities and workload during working hours. There are multiple registers and books at Primary Health Care (PHC) facilities in which a patient’s information is to be recorded for different services during a visit to a health professional. Antenatal patients coming for the first visit must be recorded in the following documents: tick register; Prevention of Mother-ToChild Transmission (PMTCT) register; consent form for HIV and AIDS testing; HIV Counselling and Testing (HCT) register (if tested positive for HIV and AIDS then this must be recorded in the Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) wellness register); ART file with an accompanying single file, completion of which is time-consuming; tuberculosis (TB) suspects register; blood specimen register; maternity case record book and Basic Antenatal Care (BANC) checklist. Nurses forget to record information in some documents which leads to the omission of important data. Omitting information might lead to mismanagement of patients. Some of the documents have incomplete and inaccurate information. As PHC facilities in Vhembe District render twenty four hour services through a call system, the same nurses are expected to resume duty at 07:00 the following morning. They are expected to work effectively and when tired a nurse may record illegible information which may cause problems when the document is retrieved by the next person for continuity of care.Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate and describe the effects of increased nurses’ workload on quality documentation of patient information at PHC facilities in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province.Methods: The study was conducted in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, where the effects of increased nurses’ workload on quality documentation of information is currently experienced. The research design was explorative, descriptive and contextual in nature. The population consisted of all nurses who work at PHC facilities in Vhembe District. Purposive sampling was used to select nurses and three professional nurses were sampled from each PHC facility. An in-depth face-to-face interview was used to collect data using an interview guide.Results: PHC facilities encountered several effects due to increased nurses’ workload where incomplete patient information is documented. Unavailability of patient information was observed, whilst some documented information was found to be illegible, inaccurate and incomplete.Conclusion: Documentation of information at PHC facilities is an evidence of effective communication amongst professional nurses. There should always be active follow-up and mentoring of the nurses’ documentation to ensure that information is accurately and fully documented in their respective facilities. Nurses find it difficult to cope with the increased workload associated with documenting patient information on the multiple records that are utilized at PHC facilities, leading to incomplete information. The number of nurses at facilities should be increased to reduce the increased workload.Keywords: Effects; increased; professional nurses’; work-load; quality nursing documentation; patient information

scholarly journals The capacity of primary health care facilities in Saudi Arabia: infrastructure, services, drug availability, and human resources

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Quds Al Saffer ◽  
Taghred Al-Ghaith ◽  
Ahlam Alshehri ◽  
Rimah Al-Mohammed ◽  
Shahad Al Homidi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
National Level ◽  
Health Care Facilities ◽  
Noncommunicable Disease ◽  
Drug Availability ◽  
Primary Health

Abstract Background Primary healthcare (PHC) is an essential component of an effective healthcare system. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) health reforms prioritize tackling the increasing noncommunicable disease burden by prioritizing PHC, centering it as the core of the newly proposed Model of Care. To identify challenges and opportunities to scale up PHC capacity, understanding the current capacity of primary health care centers (PHCC) is critical. A limited number of publications review PHC capacity in KSA, focusing on specific regions/sectors; this paper is a first to examine PHC capacity on a national level. Methods The study uses a countrywide Facility Survey that collected data in 2018 from 2319 PHCCs, generating information on their characteristics, number of health workers, services provided, and capacity elements captured through the Service Availability and Drug Availability constructed indices. Descriptive analysis was performed by rural-urban classification. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regressions were used to understand correlates to health workers and equipment availability. Finally, a logistic regression was fitted for selected services. Regressions controlled for various measures to determine correlates with facilities’ capacity. Results On a national level, there are 0.74 PHCCs per 10,000 population in KSA. There are variations in the distribution of PHCCs across regions and within regions across rural and urban areas. PHCCs in urban areas have more examination rooms but lower examination room densities. Offering 24 × 7 services in PHCCs is infrequent and dependency on paper-based medical recording remains common. More urban regions are more likely to offer general services but less likely to offer burn management and emergency services. PHCCs are mostly staffed with general medicine, family medicine, and obstetrics & gynecology physicians, whose numbers are more concentrated in urban areas; however, their densities are higher in rural areas. Finally, psychiatrists and nutritionists are rare to find in PHCCs. Conclusions Decision-makers need to consider several factors when designing PHC policies. For instance, PHC accreditation needs to be prioritized given its positive correlation with service provision and health workers availability. PHC 24 × 7 operation also needs considerations in rural areas due to the high dependency on PHCCs. Finally, there is a substantial need for improvements in e-health.

scholarly journals Factors Influence Diabetes Mellitus Control at a Primary Health Care Facility in Durban, South Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Akm Monjurul Hoque ◽  
Akm Monjurul Hoque ◽  
Somaya Buckus ◽  
Maariyah Hoque ◽  
ME Hoque
Keyword(s):  
Diabetes Mellitus ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Glycaemic Control ◽  
Blood Sugar ◽  
Health Care Facilities ◽  
Diabetes Control ◽  
Primary Health

Background: Type-2 diabetes mellitus, a non-communicable disease contributes significantly to morbidity and mortality in South Africa. It is considered a silent epidemic in certain countries in the world with the incidence expected to rapidly escalate due to ageing of the population. Little is known about the treatment outcome from Primary Health Care facilities in SA. The study estimated control and determinants of diabetes control among rural black patients attended a PHC facility. Method: A cross-sectional prospective design was adopted. Chi-square test was carried out to find significant association between dependent and independent variables. Forward stepwise logistic regression was performed to determine the significant predictor for diabetes control. Two-sided statistical tests were performed at 0.05 level of significance. Result: A total of 240 DM patients were recruited and (68.7%) of them had HbA1c level measured) and only 49 (29.7%) were found with glycaemic control. Logistic regression analysis showed that patients those read newspaper daily or almost daily were almost three times (OR=2.6) more likely to have control. Patients those measured the blood sugar at home were 4.4 times more likely to have their diabetes controlled. It was found that knowing normal blood sugar had four times more chances of controlling their diabetes than those did not know. Duration of DM treatment (5-9 years) was 60% less likely to have DM control that those had 10 or more years of DM treatment (p<0.05). Conclusion: Glycaemic control of DM was poor and identified several factors towards diabetes control among DM patient. Training and education to healthcare workers and DM patients may lead to improve DM control.

scholarly journals Primary Health Care by Vhembe women in the Limpopo province of South Africa: Knowledge and Practice

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-101
Author(s):  
Kyei KA ◽  
Spio K .
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Childhood Mortality ◽  
Sample Survey ◽  
Oral Rehydration ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Women And Children

Child mortality has increased in South Africa since 1990, despite a national policy of free primary healthcare for pregnant women and children under the age of five years. A significant number of women and children die during childbirth and 40% of stillbirths happen during labour. Lack of sufficient knowledge about primary health care (PHC) is costing South Africa greatly because many of the deaths of mothers, babies and young children could be avoided. Teenagers conceal pregnancy and that adds to higher risk of death among themselves and their unborn babies. Almost a half of all new-born babies die during the first 24 hours of birth, and 75% die in their first week of life. This study looks at primary health care by women in Vhembe by identifying knowledge and skills they possess to deal with health care issues. A 3-stage sample survey was conducted covering all the municipalities in the district. About 2660 women aged between 13 and 50 years were interviewed using structured questionnaire. Applying various statistical methods including logistic and regression modelling, this study shows that majority of the respondents know about PHC and that age and education of women are important factors affecting child’s health and survival in the Vhembe district. If Limpopo wants to reduce childhood mortality, this study recommends that efforts be made to educate women, especially teenagers about primary health care, immunization, oral rehydration therapy and attendance at clinics for pre-natal medical check-ups during pregnancy.

scholarly journals Difficulties and Barriers of Primary Health Care Physicians in Rural Areas of Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mastor A.M. Alshahrani ◽  
Mohammed A. Alsaleem ◽  
Safar A. Alsaleem ◽  
Mohammed A. Alfaya ◽  
Muhammed A.Y. Alkhairi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Primary Health Care Physicians

Aim of Study: To identify difficulties and barriers facing primary health care physicians in rural areas of Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at primary healthcare centers (PHCCs) belonging to the Saudi Ministry of Health, in rural areas of Aseer Region. A total of 134 physicians participated in the study. A validated study questionnaire was adapted and used for data collection. Results: Female physicians constituted 43.3% of respondents, age of 58.2% was 30-35 years, (Mean±SD: 32.8 ± 7.0 years), 54.5% were married, the salary of 76.1% was <10,000 SR, and the place of residence of 43.3% was in urban areas. Only 34.3% had opportunities for on-the-job continuing medical education, 33.6% were satisfied with medical equipment and resources, and 50% were dissatisfied with their salary. Internet service was present for 83.6% of participants. The social life of 83.6% was negatively affected, and 16.4% were exposed to violence at the workplace. Most participants had a favorable attitude toward working in rural areas, mainly in the form of professional satisfaction, pursuing postgraduate academic studies, building confidence as a clinician and provision of opportunities to upgrade knowledge and skills. Participants were less satisfied regarding several social factors, such as internet connectivity, isolation from family and relatives; received support from rural people, difficult schooling for children, but were not satisfied regarding PHCC infrastructure, their residential facilities, or earning more money. Conclusion: Serving within the rural healthcare system provides young physicians with an opportunity to build up their experience and to increase their confidence as physicians. However, important difficulties that they face are mainly social and financial. Hence, creating a health policy to safeguard the serving physicians’ career and providing facilities to promote personal and social well-being needs to be considered. Key words: Primary healthcare, rural health, difficulties, barriers, Saudi Arabia

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