scholarly journals Challenges faced by professional nurses when implementing the Expanded Programme on Immunisation at rural clinics in Capricorn District, Limpopo

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tebogo M. Mothiba ◽  
Flora M. Tladi
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Cold Chain ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
Professional Nurses ◽  
Rural Clinics ◽  
Health Burdens

Background: Immunisation is the cornerstone of primary healthcare. Apart from the provision of safe water, immunisation remains the most cost-effective public health intervention currently available. Immunisation prevents infectious conditions that are debilitating, fatal and have the potential to cause huge public health burdens, both financially and socially, in South Africa.Aim: To determine the challenges faced by professional nurses when implementing the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) at rural clinics in Capricorn District, Limpopo Province, South Africa.Setting: The study was conducted in selected primary healthcare clinics of Capricorn District, Limpopo Province.Methods: A qualitative explorative descriptive contextual research design was used to gather data related to the challenges faced by professional nurses when implementing EPI at rural clinics in Capricorn District.Results: The findings revealed that professional nurses had knowledge of the programme, but that they experienced several challenges during implementation of EPI that included staff shortages and problems related to maintenance of the vaccines’ potency.Conclusions: The Department of Health as well as the nursing administration should monitor policies and guidelines, and especially maintenance of a cold chain for vaccines, to ensure that they are practised throughout Limpopo Province. The problem of staff shortages also needs to be addressed so that the EPI can achieve its targeted objectives.Keywords: Professional nurse, knowledge, EPI-SA, immunisation

scholarly journals Implementing the Ideal Clinic Program at Selected Primary Healthcare Facilities in South Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 7762
Author(s):  
Livhuwani Muthelo ◽  
Faith Moradi ◽  
Thabo Arthur Phukubye ◽  
Masenyani Oupa Mbombi ◽  
Rambelani Nancy Malema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Ethics Committee ◽  
Care Quality ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Professional Nurses ◽  
The Ideal

Background: Primary healthcare (PHC) in South Africa often experiences crucial challenges that lead to patients’ negative experiences regarding their care, compromising the significant role that PHC services could play in health promotion and disease prevention. The primary purpose of implementing the Ideal Clinic (IC) in South Africa was to improve patients’ care quality at the clinics. There seems to be a paucity of studies determining professional nurses’ experiences when implementing the IC. Purpose: This study aimed to explore and describe professional nurses’ experiences regarding implementing the IC at three selected clinics in the Makhado local area. Study method: A qualitative phenomenological research design was used to explore professional nurses’ experiences regarding IC implementation. Purposive sampling was used to select 15 professional nurses working at the three selected clinics. Data were collected using semi-structured one-on-one interviews. Interviews were conducted until saturation was reached. Trustworthiness was ensured by applying Lincoln and Guba’s four criteria, i.e., credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability. Ethical clearance was obtained from the University of Limpopo Turfloop Research and Ethics Committee, and permission to conduct the study was obtained from Limpopo Province Department of Health Research and Ethics Committee. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data. Results: The following themes emerged from the study findings: perceived benefits of the IC on the primary healthcare services provided to the community, challenges experienced by professional nurses when implementing the IC program, and challenges related to the supply of resources for implementing the IC. The study results revealed that, although the IC aimed to improve the overburdened PHC facilities in SA, the professional nurses still experienced some challenges when implementing the IC program. Some of the challenges faced were a lack of knowledge and training in the IC program, poor infrastructure and the shortage of equipment, and inadequate provision of support by line managers, all of which resulted in poor-quality patient care. Conclusion: This study revealed that the introduction and implementation of the IC can have potential benefits to the community and the primary healthcare system. However, it was not introduced and appropriately implemented, which resulted in professional nurses experiencing several challenges. The national department of health needs to strengthen the program’s implementation through proper training, consultation, and continuous support of the nurses. Provision of quality equipment and supplies is also recommended.

scholarly journals Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies in the town of Ariano Irpino (Avellino, Campania, Italy): a population-based study

2021 ◽  
pp. FSO673
Author(s):  
Pellegrino Cerino ◽  
Annachiara Coppola ◽  
Palmiero Volzone ◽  
Antonio Pizzolante ◽  
Biancamaria Pierri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Screening Strategy ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Local Health Unit ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
Asymptomatic Individuals ◽  
Regional Authorities

The Italian municipality of Ariano Irpino (Avellino, Campania, Italy) was locked down by the regional authorities from March until April 2020 after several citizens tested positive for SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). A serological mass screening campaign targeting the Ariano Irpino population using the Roche Cobas Elecsys anti-SARS-CoV-2 assay was organized by the Zoo-Prophylactic Institute of Southern Italy (Portici, Italy) and conducted in cooperation with the Local Health Unit (Azienda Sanitaria Locale – ASL – Avellino, Avellino, Italy), the Department of Public Health of University Federico II (Naples, Italy) and Department of Health Services of Azienda Ospedaliera dei Colli-Cotugno and Monaldi Hospital (Naples, Italy) in May 2020. A total of 13,218 asymptomatic individuals were reviewed in this analysis. A total of 738 citizens tested positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (398 females, 340 males). The overall prevalence in the sample was 5.6% (95% CI: 5.2–6.0). Among seropositive citizens, 101 cases tested positive on RT-PCR (0.76% of the overall population). Among citizens aged 14–18, 18–65 and >65 years, the seroprevalence was equal to 6.1 (95% CI: 4.1–8.7), 5.6 (95% CI: 5.1–6.1) and 4% (95% CI: 3.3–4.8), respectively. In the pediatric cohort (<14 years old), seroprevalence was 13% (95% CI: 10.2–16.2). A serological-based screening strategy could be a cost-effective public health intervention to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

Organization of immunization services for public health

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yauba Saidu
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Burden Of Disease ◽  
Disease Surveillance ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Vaccine Uptake ◽  
Cold Chain ◽  
Vaccination Program ◽  
Immunization Service ◽  
Immunization Services

Immunization is a key public health intervention that can help nations attain Goal #3 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals as vaccines already prevent about 2–3 million deaths each year. To be effective, immunization services must be designed and delivered in a way to reach populations who need them, irrespective of who they are and where they live. Effective national immunization systems must have clear plans based on a vision of the future and a step-by-step process on how the vision will be translated into reality. Such plans are structured around eight topics that go beyond vaccine licensure and recommendations, including management, financing, logistics, human resources, service delivery, vaccine supply and quality, disease surveillance, advocacy and communication. The cold chain system is the backbone of any immunization program and consists of a network of equipment, material, people, processes, and financial resources that enable safe transportation of vaccines from the factory to the point of administration to the patient. Immunization service delivery includes any strategies and activities for delivering immunization service to a target population. Introduction of a new vaccine in a country program requires coordinated decision-making, considering the burden of disease, the characteristics of the respective vaccine and the capacity of the immunization system to deliver it. Adverse Events Following Immunization is another key component as documentation of vaccine safety is crucial for trust in a vaccination program. Scientifically valid and timely burden-of-disease surveillance as well as vaccine uptake data are core functions of any vaccination program and needed for information of the public and for timely actions.

Alcohol and Other Drugs: Public Health Ethics Issues

2019 ◽  
pp. 510-523
Author(s):  
Brendan Saloner
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Harm Reduction ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Personal Responsibility ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Individual Liberty ◽  
Alcohol And Other Drugs

This chapter examines ethical principles that guide public health intervention to reduce the harms of alcohol and other drugs, including justice-based concerns regarding intervention. While many egalitarian moral theories support public health measures to reduce these harms, and thereby protect individual capability and opportunity, there are opposing arguments to limit public health intervention based on either individual liberty or personal responsibility. The chapter also reviews ethical issues related to prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and decriminalization/legalization. Prevention through education is politically appealing, but is not always evidence-based and can be stigmatizing. Treatment can be highly cost-effective, but some approaches are controversial, such as legally coerced treatment. Harm reduction approaches, such as needle exchange, can reduce many of the negative health consequences of alcohol and drug use, but they require a more direct government role in illicit behaviors. Marijuana legalization is a growing movement in the United States, but it poses complex regulatory challenges.

scholarly journals A Road Map for the Global Elimination of Congenital Syphilis

2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary L. Kamb ◽  
Lori M. Newman ◽  
Patricia L. Riley ◽  
Jennifer Mark ◽  
Sarah J. Hawkes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Congenital Syphilis ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Essential Medicine ◽  
Congenital Infection ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Syphilis Infection ◽  
Road Map ◽  
Adverse Pregnancy ◽  
Maternal Syphilis

Congenital syphilis is the oldest recognized congenital infection, and continues to account for extensive global perinatal morbidity and mortality today. Serious adverse pregnancy outcomes caused by maternal syphilis infection are prevented with screening early in pregnancy and prompt treatment of women testing positive. Intramuscular penicillin, an inexpensive antibiotic on the essential medicine list of nations all over the world, effectively cures infection and prevents congenital syphilis. In fact, at a cost of 11–15 per disability adjusted life year (DALY) averted, maternal syphilis screening and treatment is among the most cost-effective public health interventions in existence. Yet implementation of this basic public health intervention is sporadic in countries with highest congenital syphilis burden. We discuss the global burden of this devastating disease, current progress and ongoing challenges for its elimination in countries with highest prevalence, and next steps in ensuring a world free of preventable perinatal deaths caused by syphilis.

scholarly journals Views of professional nurses regarding low tuberculosis cure rate in Greater Giyani Municipality, Limpopo Province

Curationis ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nandzumuni V. Maswanganyi ◽  
Rachel T. Lebese ◽  
Lunic B. Khoza ◽  
Ntsieni S. Mashau
Keyword(s):  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
World Health ◽  
Disease Spread ◽  
Cure Rate ◽  
Healthcare Facilities ◽  
Professional Nurses

Background: Management of patients suffering from tuberculosis (TB) after discharge from hospital plays a critical role in the cure rate of TB. Despite interventions developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to improve the cure rate, TB remains a worldwide health problem.Objective: The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the views of professional nurses regarding the low TB cure rate in primary healthcare facilities of Greater Giyani Municipality in Limpopo Province, South Africa, with the aim of determining strategies that can be used to improve this low rate.Method: This study was qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual in nature. The population consisted of professional nurses working in primary healthcare facilities within Greater Giyani Municipality, which has a TB cure rate below the national target of 85 %. Data gathering was through individual face-to-face interviews using an interview guide. Open-coding was used to analyse the data in this study.Results: The theme that emerged from data was ‘factors contributing to low TB cure rate’. This theme was supported by the following sub-themes: poor referral system, lack of knowledge about TB and its treatment, stigma attached to TB, and cultural and religious beliefs. The professional nurses suggested counselling of TB patients upon diagnosis, advice about patients’ responsibilities and the involvement of family members.Conclusion: The involvement of community stakeholders in TB prevention, health promotion and education activities devoted to disease spread and cure is vital so that the stigma attached to TB can be eliminated. TB education and awareness programmes should be included in the curriculum of primary schools.

scholarly journals The promise of disease detection dogs in pandemic response: lessons learned from COVID-19

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
C.M. Otto ◽  
T.K. Sell ◽  
T. Veenema ◽  
D. Hosangadi ◽  
R.A. Vahey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Screening Method ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The United States ◽  
Disease Screening ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Disease Detection

Abstract One of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is the utility of an early, flexible and rapidly deployable disease screening and detection response. The largely uncontrolled spread of the pandemic in the United States exposed a range of planning and implementation shortcomings, which if they had been in place before the pandemic emerged, may have changed the trajectory. Disease screening by detection dogs show great promise as a non-invasive, efficient, and cost-effective screening method for COVID-19 infection. We explore evidence of their use in infectious and chronic diseases, the training, oversight, resources required for implementation, and potential uses in various settings. Disease detection dogs may contribute to the current and future public health pandemics; however, further research is needed to extend our knowledge and measurement of their effectiveness and feasibility as a public health intervention tool and efforts are needed ensure public and political support.

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