Partnering to implement the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer in the Americas: prioritizing systems strengthening.

Working with PAHO/WHO to prioritize childhood cancer in the context of systems strengthening is central to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (SJCRH)'s role as WHO Collaborating Centre for Childhood Cancer. This manuscript focuses on how SJCRH and PAHO/WHO have partnered to apply C5 (Country Collaboration for Childhood Cancer Control) to define and implement priority actions regionally, strengthening Ministry programs for childhood cancer, while implementing the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer since 2018. Using C5, a tool developed by SJCRH, PAHO/WHO and SJCRH co-hosted regional/national workshops engaging authorities, clinicians and other stakeholders across 10 countries to map health systems needs and prioritize strategic activities (spanning Central America, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Brazil and Uruguay). SJCRH provided English/Spanish/Portuguese C5 versions/templates for analysis/prioritization exercises, and worked with PAHO/WHO and country teams to implement C5, analyze findings, and develop outputs. In an eight-country regional workshop, countries defined priorities within national/regional initiatives and ranked their value and political will, incorporating country-specific surveys and stakeholder dialogues. Each country prioritized one strategic activity for 2022-2023, exchanged insights via storytelling, and disseminated and applied results to inform country-specific and regional action plans. National workshops analyses have been incorporated into cancer control planning activities and collaborative work regionally. Implementation success factors include engaging actors beyond the clinic, enabling flexibility, and focusing on co-design with stakeholders. Joint implementation of C5 catalyzed prioritization and accelerated strategic activities to improve policies, capacity, and quality of care for children in the Americas, supporting Ministries to integrate childhood cancer interventions as part of systems strengthening.

La colaboración con la OPS/OMS para priorizar el cáncer infantil en el contexto del fortalecimiento de los sistemas es fundamental para la labor del St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (SJCRH) como centro colaborador de la OMS contra el cáncer infantil. Este artículo se centra en la alianza entre el SJCRH y la OPS/OMS en la aplicación de la herramienta C5 (colaboración nacional para el control del cáncer infantil) para definir y ejecutar medidas prioritarias a nivel regional, fortalecer los programas contra el cáncer infantil del ministerio y poner en marcha la Iniciativa Mundial contra el Cáncer Infantil desde el 2018. Con C5, una herramienta elaborada por el SJCRH, la OPS/OMS y este hospital organizaron conjuntamente talleres regionales y nacionales con autoridades, personal médico y otras partes interesadas en diez países para determinar cuáles son las necesidades de los sistemas de salud y priorizar las actividades estratégicas (en América Central, República Dominicana, Haití, Brasil y Uruguay). El SJCRH proporcionó versiones y plantillas de C5 en inglés, español y portugués para actividades de análisis y priorización y trabajó con la OPS/OMS y los equipos de país para ejecutar la herramienta C5, analizar los resultados y elaborar productos. En un taller regional de ocho países, se definieron las prioridades en las iniciativas regionales y nacionales, se clasificó su valor y la voluntad política y se incorporaron encuestas específicas para cada país y diálogos con las partes interesadas. Cada país priorizó una actividad estratégica para el período 2022-2023, intercambió ideas por medio de narrativas, y difundió y aplicó los resultados para fundamentar planes de acción tanto regionales como específicos para el país. Los análisis de los talleres nacionales se han incorporado a las actividades de planificación del control del cáncer y al trabajo colaborativo a nivel regional. Entre los factores de éxito de la ejecución se encuentra involucrar a los agentes más allá de lo clínico, permitir que haya flexibilidad y centrarse en un diseño elaborado en colaboración con las partes interesadas. La ejecución conjunta de la herramienta C5 catalizó la priorización y aceleró las actividades estratégicas para mejorar las políticas, la capacidad y la calidad de la atención infantil en la Región de las Américas y brindó apoyo a los ministerios para integrar las intervenciones contra el cáncer infantil en el fortalecimiento de los sistemas.

A colaboração com a OPAS/OMS para priorizar o câncer infantil no contexto do fortalecimento dos sistemas é fundamental para o papel do St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (SJCRH) como Centro Colaborador da OMS para o Câncer Infantil. Este artigo mostra como o SJCRH e a OPAS/OMS se associaram para aplicar a ferramenta C5 (Colaboração Nacional para Controle do Câncer Infantil), com o propósito de definir e implementar ações prioritárias regionalmente, fortalecendo programas ministeriais para o câncer na infância, durante a implementação da Iniciativa Global para o Câncer Infantil desde 2018. Com auxílio da C5, uma ferramenta desenvolvida pelo SJCRH, a OPAS/OMS e o SJCRH organizaram conjuntamente oficinas regionais/nacionais com a participação de autoridades, profissionais de saúde e outras partes interessadas em 10 países, com a finalidade de mapear as necessidades dos sistemas de saúde e priorizar atividades estratégicas (abrangendo América Central, República Dominicana, Haiti, Brasil e Uruguai). O SJCRH forneceu versões/modelos da C5 em inglês, espanhol e português para exercícios de análise/priorização e colaborou com a OPAS/OMS e as equipes dos países para implementar a C5, analisar resultados e desenvolver produtos. Em uma oficina regional com oito países, foram definidas as prioridades das iniciativas nacionais/regionais e classificados seu valor e vontade política, incorporando levantamentos nacionais e diálogos entre as partes interessadas. Cada país priorizou uma atividade estratégica para 2022-2023, trocou conhecimentos por meio da narração de histórias e disseminou e aplicou os resultados para informar planos de ação nacionais e regionais. As análises das oficinas nacionais foram incorporadas às atividades de planejamento para controle do câncer e ao trabalho conjunto no âmbito regional. Entre os fatores de êxito da implementação estão o engajamento de agentes de fora do segmento da saúde, a oferta de flexibilidade e a ênfase no planejamento conjunto com as partes interessadas. A implementação conjunta da C5 catalisou a priorização e acelerou atividades estratégicas para aprimorar as políticas, a capacidade e a qualidade da atenção às crianças nas Américas, apoiando os ministérios na integração das intervenções contra o câncer infantil como parte do fortalecimento dos sistemas.

Building back better children's surgical services toward universal health coverage: Perspectives from Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

Introduction: This article is part of the Research Topic 'Health Systems Recovery in the Context of COVID-19 and Protracted Conflict'. Children's surgical services are crucial, yet underappreciated, for children's health and must be sufficiently addressed to make and sustain progress toward universal health coverage (UHC). Despite their considerable burden and socioeconomic cost, surgical diseases have been relatively neglected in favor of communicable diseases living up to their inauspicious moniker: 'the neglected stepchild of global health'. This article aims to raise awareness around children's surgical diseases and offers perspectives from two prototypical LMICs on strengthening surgical services in the context of health systems recovery following the COVID-19 experience to make and sustain progress toward UHC. Approach: We used a focused literature review supplemented by the perspectives of local experts and the 6-components framework for surgical systems planning to present two case studies of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. The lived experiences of the authors are used to describe the impact of COVID-19 on respective surgical systems and offer perspectives on building back the health system and recovering essential health services for sustainability and resilience. Findings: We found that limited high-level policy and planning instruments, an overburdened and under-resourced health and allied workforce, underdeveloped surgical infrastructure (from key utilities to essential medical products), lack of locally generated research, and the specter of prohibitively high out-of-pocket costs for children's surgery are common challenges in both countries that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Discussion: Continued chronic underinvestment and inattention to children's surgical diseases coupled with the devastating effect of the COVID-19 pandemic threaten progress toward key global health objectives. Urgent attention and investment in the context of health systems recovery is needed from policy to practice levels to improve infrastructure; attract, retain and train the surgical and allied health workforce; and improve service delivery access with equity considerations to meet the 2030 Lancet Commission goals, and make and sustain progress toward UHC and the SDGs.

Trajectories of re-engagement: factors and mechanisms enabling patient return to HIV care in Zambia.

INTRODUCTION: While disengagement from HIV care threatens the health of persons living with HIV (PLWH) and incidence-reduction targets, re-engagement is a critical step towards positive outcomes. Studies that establish a deeper understanding of successful return to clinical care among previously disengaged PLWH and the factors supporting re-engagement are essential to facilitate long-term care continuity. METHODS: We conducted narrative, patient-centred, in-depth interviews between January and June 2019 with 20 PLWH in Lusaka, Zambia, who had disengaged and then re-engaged in HIV care, identified through electronic medical records (EMRs). We applied narrative analysis techniques, and deductive and inductive thematic analysis to identify engagement patterns and enablers of return. RESULTS: We inductively identified five trajectories of care engagement, suggesting patterns in patient characteristics, experienced barriers and return facilitators that may aid intervention targeting including: (1) intermittent engagement;(2) mostly engaged; (3) delayed linkage after testing; (4) needs time to initiate antiretroviral therapy (ART); and (5) re-engagement with ART initiation. Patient-identified periods of disengagement from care did not always align with care gaps indicated in the EMR. Key, interactive re-engagement facilitators experienced by participants, with varied importance across trajectories, included a desire for physical wellness and social support manifested through verbal encouragement, facility outreach or personal facility connections and family instrumental support. The mechanisms through which facilitators led to return were: (1) the promising of living out one's life priorities; (2) feeling valued; (3) fostering interpersonal accountability; (4) re-entry navigation support; (5) facilitated care and treatment access; and (6) management of significant barriers, such as depression. CONCLUSIONS: While preliminary, the identified trajectories may guide interventions to support re-engagement, such as offering flexible ART access to patients with intermittent engagement patterns instead of stable patients only. Further, for re-engagement interventions to achieve impact, they must activate mechanisms underlying re-engagement behaviours. For example, facility outreach that reminds a patient to return to care but does not affirm a patient's value or navigate re-entry is unlikely to be effective. The demonstrated importance of positive health facility connections reinforces a growing call for patient-centred care. Additionally, interventions should consider the important role communities play in fostering treatment motivation and overcoming practical barriers.

Tracking health system performance in times of crisis using routine health data: lessons learned from a multicountry consortium.

COVID-19 has prompted the use of readily available administrative data to track health system performance in times of crisis and to monitor disruptions in essential healthcare services. In this commentary we describe our experience working with these data and lessons learned across countries. Since April 2020, the Quality Evidence for Health System Transformation (QuEST) network has used administrative data and routine health information systems (RHIS) to assess health system performance during COVID-19 in Chile, Ethiopia, Ghana, Haiti, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mexico, Nepal, South Africa, Republic of Korea and Thailand. We compiled a large set of indicators related to common health conditions for the purpose of multicountry comparisons. The study compiled 73 indicators. A total of 43% of the indicators compiled pertained to reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH). Only 12% of the indicators were related to hypertension, diabetes or cancer care. We also found few indicators related to mental health services and outcomes within these data systems. Moreover, 72% of the indicators compiled were related to volume of services delivered, 18% to health outcomes and only 10% to the quality of processes of care. While several datasets were complete or near-complete censuses of all health facilities in the country, others excluded some facility types or population groups. In some countries, RHIS did not capture services delivered through non-visit or nonconventional care during COVID-19, such as telemedicine. We propose the following recommendations to improve the analysis of administrative and RHIS data to track health system performance in times of crisis: ensure the scope of health conditions covered is aligned with the burden of disease, increase the number of indicators related to quality of care and health outcomes; incorporate data on nonconventional care such as telehealth; continue improving data quality and expand reporting from private sector facilities; move towards collecting patient-level data through electronic health records to facilitate quality-of-care assessment and equity analyses; implement more resilient and standardized health information technologies; reduce delays and loosen restrictions for researchers to access the data; complement routine data with patient-reported data; and employ mixed methods to better understand the underlying causes of service disruptions.

Global Health System Resilience during Encounters with Stressors - Lessons Learnt from Cancer Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

AIMS: The protracted COVID-19 pandemic has overwhelmed health systems globally, including many aspects of cancer control. This has underscored the multidimensional nature of cancer control, which requires a more comprehensive approach involving taking a wider perspective of health systems. Here, we investigated aspects of health system resilience in maintaining cancer services globally during the COVID-19 pandemic. This will allow for health systems to be resilient to different types of system stressors/shocks in the future, to allow cancer care to be maintained optimally. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using the World Health Organization health system framework (capturing aspects of service delivery, health workforce, information, medical products, vaccines and technologies, financing and governance and leadership), we carried out a comparative analysis of the impact of COVID-19 and the synthesis of the findings in responses in cancer care in 10 countries/jurisdictions across four continents comprising a wide diversity of health systems, geographical regions and socioeconomic status (China, Colombia, Egypt, Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, India, Singapore, Sri Lanka, UK and Zambia). A combination of literature and document reviews and interviews with experts was used. RESULTS: Our study revealed that: (i) underlying weaknesses of health systems before the pandemic were exacerbated by the pandemic (e.g. economic issues in low- and middle-income countries led to greater shortage of medication and resource constraints compounded by inadequacies of public financing and issues of engagement with stakeholders and leadership/governance); (ii) no universal adaptive strategies were applicable to all the systems, highlighting the need for health systems to design emergency plans based on local context; (iii) despite the many differences between health systems, common issues were identified, such as the lack of contingency plan for pandemics, inadequate financial policies for cancer patients and lack of evidence-based approaches for competing priorities of cancer care/pandemic control. CONCLUSION: We identified four key points/recommendations to enhance the resilient capacity of cancer care during the COVID-19 pandemic and other system stressors: (i) effective pandemic control approaches in general are essential to maintain the continuity of cancer care during the emergency health crises; (ii) strong health systems (with sufficient cancer care resources, e.g. health workforce, and universal health coverage) are fundamental to maintain quality care; (iii) the ability to develop response strategies and adapt to evolving evidence/circumstances is critical for health system resilience (including introducing systematic, consistent and evidence-based changes, national support and guidance in policy development and implementation); (iv) preparedness and contingency plans for future public health emergencies, engaging the whole of society, to achieve health system resilience for future crises and to transform healthcare delivery beyond the pandemic.

JUNO Project: Deployment and Validation of a Low-Cost Cloud-Based Robotic Platform for Reliable Smart Navigation and Natural Interaction with Humans in an Elderly Institution.

This paper describes the main results of the JUNO project, a proof of concept developed in the Region of Murcia in Spain, where a smart assistant robot with capabilities for smart navigation and natural human interaction has been developed and deployed, and it is being validated in an elderly institution with real elderly users. The robot is focused on helping people carry out cognitive stimulation exercises and other entertainment activities since it can detect and recognize people, safely navigate through the residence, and acquire information about attention while users are doing the mentioned exercises. All the information could be shared through the Cloud, if needed, and health professionals, caregivers and relatives could access such information by considering the highest standards of privacy required in these environments. Several tests have been performed to validate the system, which combines classic techniques and new Deep Learning-based methods to carry out the requested tasks, including semantic navigation, face detection and recognition, speech to text and text to speech translation, and natural language processing, working both in a local and Cloud-based environment, obtaining an economically affordable system. The paper also discusses the limitations of the platform and proposes several solutions to the detected drawbacks in this kind of complex environment, where the fragility of users should be also considered.

Towards conceptualizing patients as partners in health systems: a systematic review and descriptive synthesis.

BACKGROUND: With the sharp increase in the involvement of patients (including family and informal caregivers) as active participants, collaborators, advisors and decision-makers in health systems, a new role has emerged: the patient partner. The role of patient partner differs from other forms of patient engagement in its longitudinal and bidirectional nature. This systematic review describes extant work on how patient partners are conceptualized and engaged in health systems. In doing so, it furthers the understanding of the role and activities of patient partners, and best practices for future patient partnership activities. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted of peer-reviewed literature published in English or French that describes patient partner roles between 2000 and 2021 in any country or sector of the health system. We used a broad search strategy to capture descriptions of longitudinal patient engagement that may not have used words such as "partner" or "advisor". RESULTS: A total of 506 eligible papers were identified, representing patient partnership activities in mostly high-income countries. These studies overwhelmingly described patient partnership in health research. We identified clusters of literature about patient partnership in cancer and mental health. The literature is saturated with single-site descriptive studies of patient partnership on individual projects or initiatives. There is a lack of work synthesizing impacts, facilitating factors and outcomes of patient partnership in healthcare. CONCLUSIONS: There is not yet a consolidated understanding of the role, activities or impacts of patient partners. Advancement of the literature has been stymied by a lack of consistently used terminology. The literature is ready to move beyond single-site descriptions, and synthesis of existing pockets of high-quality theoretical work will be essential to this evolution.

Economic and Social Burden of Childhood Cancer in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Cancer is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the scale and nature of the socio-economic burdens that face families of children with pediatric cancer in Bangladesh on a day-to-day basis and the reasons for delays in diagnosis and treatment of the disease. METHODS: A cross-sectional exploratory study including 54 families in Bangladesh who had children with cancer. A structured questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data, supplemented by open-ended questions to gain in-depth information about specific issues. RESULTS: The majority of children were male (n=39, 72.2%) and aged 6-15 (n=38, 70.4%). Blood cancer (n=20, 37%) and acute lymphocytic leukemia (n=25, 46.3%) were the most common diagnoses. Many parents stopped working after their child's cancer diagnosis (n=28, 51.9%). Many families (n=21, 38.90%) spent more per month (e.g., USD 471-1,179) on their child's treatment than their income. No external financial support was available to cover this high expenditure, putting families under financial pressure. Social issues included fear, lack of cancer awareness, stigma in rural communities, low-quality facilities, inappropriate service provider behavior, poor facility hygiene, and high fees. CONCLUSION: This study revealed that childhood cancer has a substantial impact on parents' socioeconomic status, and many families face financial, social, and psychological challenges. This highlights the need for urgent collaborative action to address these problems.

Health and healthcare equity within the Canadian cancer care sector: a rapid scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Despite a publicly-funded healthcare system, alarming cancer-related health and healthcare inequities persist in Canada. However, it remains unclear how equity is being understood and taken up within the Canadian cancer context. Our objective was to identify how health and healthcare equity are being discussed as goals or aims within the cancer care sector in Canada. METHODS: A rapid scoping review was conducted; five biomedical databases, 30 multidisciplinary websites, and Google were searched. We included English-language documents published between 2008 and 2021 that discussed health or healthcare equity in the Canadian cancer context. RESULTS: Of 3860 identified documents, 83 were included for full-text analysis. The prevalence of published and grey equity-oriented literature has increased over time (2008-2014 [n = 20]; 2015-2021 [n = 62]). Only 25% of documents (n = 21) included a definition of health equity. Concepts such as inequity, inequality and disparity were frequently used interchangeably, resulting in conceptual muddling. Only 43% of documents (n = 36) included an explicit health equity goal. Although a suite of actions were described across the cancer control continuum to address equity goals, most were framed as recommendations rather than direct interventions. CONCLUSION: Health and healthcare equity is a growing priority in the cancer care sector; however, conceptual clarity is needed to guide the development of robust equity goals, and the development of sustainable, measurable actions that redress inequities across the cancer control continuum. If we are to advance health and healthcare equity in the cancer care sector, a coordinated and integrated approach will be required to enact transformative and meaningful change.

The impacts of waiting for surgical correction of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis and its repercussions for publicly funded health systems: systematic review.

PURPOSE: To investigate, through a systematic review, the impact of the waiting time for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) surgical correction from the point of view of deformity evolution, treatment cost, and quality of life. METHODS: PubMed, Embase, LILACS, SciELO, Scopus, Web of Science, LIVIVO, and Cochrane Library databases were searched by two researchers to select the articles. The eligibility criteria were: Patients diagnosed with AIS with indication for surgical correction and submitted to waiting lists until treatment. The risks of bias were evaluated using the Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies-Interventions (ROBINS-I) tool, and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system was used to classify the level of the evidence for each outcome. The summary of the available evidence is presented in a narrative synthesis. RESULTS: Six observational studies were included. In a Canadian study, the primary outcome was the need for additional spine surgery in patients who had to wait more than three months due to spine deformity progression. American researchers presented a sample of premenarcheal and skeletally immature patients with AIS showing increased Cobb angle and attributed this to a six-month waiting for the surgical treatment. Another study included 177 patients with AIS with a mean waiting time of 225.7 days. There was a worsening average of 7.7° ± 8.6° in Cobb angle, and there was a change in surgical plan in 28 patients, which increased surgical time. Studies that evaluated the treatment cost showed significantly higher mean costs in those who waited longer than six months. Regarding the quality of life, while waiting for surgery, a retrospective study found that patients who underwent surgery earlier showed better results in a questionnaire that assessed their quality of life compared to those who were still waiting. CONCLUSION: Observational studies show that, in individuals who are on waiting lists for AIS surgery, there is a worsening of the spinal deformity (substantial evidence), an increasing cost of treatment (moderate evidence) and it may negatively impact patients' quality of life (insufficient evidence). Performing better methodological quality studies to investigate these outcomes can violate good research practices since randomized clinical trials on this subject have ethical limitations to be carried out. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The authors declare that the systematic review protocol was registered at the international prospective register of systematic reviews (PROSPERO), CRD42020212134, and it was accepted for publication.

Colorectal cancer screening in a safety-net health system: The intersectional impact of race, ethnicity, language, and mental health.

Though rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening continue to improve with increased advocacy and awareness, there are numerous disparities that continue to be defined within different health systems and populations. We aimed to define associations between patients' socio-demographic characteristics and CRC screening in a well-resourced safety-net health system. A retrospective review was performed from 2018 to 2019 of patients between 50 and 75-years-old who had a primary care visit within the last two years. Numerous patient characteristics were extracted from the medical record, including self-reported race, self-reported ethnicity, insurance, preferred language, severe mental health diagnoses (SMHD), and substance use disorder (SUD). Multivariate logistic regression assessed characteristics associated with CRC screening. Of 22,145 included patients, 16,065 (72.5%) underwent CRC screening. <40% of the population was White or of North American/European ethnicity and 38% had limited English proficiency. Hispanic patients had the highest screening rate while White patients had the lowest among races (78.1% vs 68.5%, respectively). White patients had higher rates of SMHD and SUD (p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis, most other races (Black, Asian, and Hispanic), ethnicities, and languages had significantly higher odds of screening, ranging from 20% to 55% higher, when White, North American/European, English-speakers are used as reference. In a well-resourced safety-net health system, patients who were non-White, non-North American/European, and non-English-speaking, had higher odds of CRC screening. This data from a unique health system may better guide screening outreach and implementation strategies in historically under-resourced communities, leading to strategies for equitable colorectal cancer screening.

The Influence of Rural Healthcare Systems and Communities on Surgery and Recovery: A Qualitative Study.

INTRODUCTION: Successful recovery after surgery is complex and highly individual. Rural patients encounter greater barriers to successful surgical recovery than urban patients due to varying healthcare and community factors. Although studies have previously examined the recovery process, rural patients' experiences with recovery have not been well-studied. The rural socioecological context can provide insights into potential barriers or facilitators to rural patient recovery after surgery. METHODS: We conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with a purposeful sample of 30 adult general surgery patients from rural areas in the Mountain West region of the United States. We used the socioecological framework to analyze their responses. Interviews focused on rural participants' experiences accessing healthcare and the impact of family and community support during postoperative recovery. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded using content and thematic analysis. RESULTS: All participants commented on the quality of their rural healthcare systems and its influence on postoperative care. Some enjoyed the trust developed through long-standing relationships with providers in their communities. However, participants described community providers' lack of money, equipment, and/or knowledge as barriers to care. Following surgery, participants recognized that there are advantages and disadvantages to receiving family and community support. Some participants worried about being stigmatized or judged by their community. CONCLUSIONS: Future interventions aimed at improving access to and recovery from surgery for rural patients should take into account the unique perspectives of rural patients. Addressing the socioecological factors surrounding rural surgery patients, such as healthcare, family, and community resources, will be key to improving postoperative recovery.

Health system barriers influencing timely breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among women in low and middle-income Asian countries: evidence from a mixed-methods systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer type and the leading cause of cancer mortality among women in developing countries. A high prevalence of late breast cancer diagnosis and treatment has been reported predominantly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), including those in Asia. Thus, this study utilized a mixed-methods systematic review to synthesize the health system barriers influencing timely breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among women in Asian countries. METHODS: We systematically searched five electronic databases for studies published in English from 2012 to 2022 on health system barriers that influence timely breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among women in Asian countries. The review was conducted per the methodology for systematic reviews and reported following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, while health system barriers were extracted and classified based on the World Health Organization (WHO)'s Health Systems Framework. The mixed-methods appraisal tool was used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. RESULTS: Twenty-six studies were included in this review. Fifteen studies were quantitative, nine studies were qualitative, and two studies used a mixed-methods approach. These studies were conducted across ten countries in Asia. This review identified health systems barriers that influence timely breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. The factors were categorized under the following: (1) delivery of health services (2) health workforce (3) financing for health (4) health information system and (5) essential medicines and technology. Delivery of health care (low quality of health care) was the most occurring barrier followed by the health workforce (unavailability of physicians), whilst health information systems were identified as the least barrier. CONCLUSION: This study concluded that health system factors such as geographical accessibility to treatment, misdiagnosis, and long waiting times at health facilities were major barriers to early breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among Asian women in LMICs. Eliminating these barriers will require deliberate health system strengthening, such as improving training for the health workforce and establishing more healthcare facilities.

Self-health assessments in Saudi Arabia: Directions for an integrated primary healthcare.

Background: Public health data for dissemination and discussion in Saudi Arabia, for the purposes of primary healthcare, are limited but the new initiatives of General Authority of Statistics creates many national surveys. One of the most recent one, the Family/Household Health Survey - 2017 aims to fill the gaps, at the same time, aids in discussions on primary healthcare. Objectives: Analyses done in this research are aimed at appraising the self-assessed health and to examine age-sex and geographic differentials and their probable interconnections with chronic diseases, injuries, and periodic examinations. Data and Methods: This survey conducted in October-December, 2017 covered both native and foreigner households from all the 13 administrative areas through a random sample procedure involving primary sampling units and secondary sampling units. A portion of the published data on self-assessment of health, chronic diseases, injuries, and periodic medical examinations were analyzed. Results: More than half of the persons in the Kingdom, reportedly, are in good health; more so among females than males: proportions decreased with increasing age up to 40 years, thereafter increased sharply. Moreover, the major regions have lesser proportion of people with good health. Prevalence of chronic diseases increases with age, in both total and native population, but with variations across specific diseases - hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and with geographic differentials. On the other hand, there are injuries (from traffic accidents and others) occurred at house, work/school, public place, and other places; pertinent with geographic variations. Moreover, age, sex, and regional differences in periodic health examinations have a contributing effect on health assessments. Moreover, the median age shows a pattern resembling adults assessing good health; chronic diseases after 50s; injuries before 40s; periodic medical examinations in 50s; with females at a lower age, in both groups of population. Conclusions: The national health system played an important role not only in health status and health assessments but also in building confidence and trust and thereby enhancing optimism, realism, recognition, self-awareness, and acceptance of physical condition. Thus, age, sex, and regional variations in health assessment are born out of chronic diseases, injuries, and periodic medical examinations and also of expectations and experiences. Generation of such information, effective dissemination, and regular discussions at various levels followed by in-depth analyses raise the primary healthcare and thus the population health.

Tracking progress towards universal health coverage for essential health services in China, 2008-2018.

INTRODUCTION: We comprehensively evaluate whether the Chinese Government's goal of ensuring Universal Health Coverage for essential health services has been achieved. METHODS: We used data from the 2008, 2013 and 2018 National Health Services Survey to report on the coverage of a range of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) indicator 3.8.1. We created per capita household income deciles for urban and rural samples separately. We report time trends in coverage and the slope index (SII) and relative index (RII). RESULTS: Despite much lower levels of income and education, rural populations made as much progress as their urban counterparts for most interventions. Coverage of maternal and child health interventions increased substantially in urban and rural areas, with decreasing rich-poor inequalities except for antenatal care. In rural China, one-fifth women could not access 5 or more antenatal visits. Coverage of 8 or more visits were 34% and 68%, respectively in decile D1 (the poorest) and decile D10 (the richest) (SII 35% (95% CI 22% to 48%)). More than 90% households had access to clean water, but basic sanitation was poor for rural households and the urban poorest, presenting bottom inequality. Effective coverage for non-communicable diseases was low. Medication for hypertension and diabetes were relatively high (>70%). But adequate management, counting in preventive interventions, were much lower and decreased overtime, although inequalities were small in size. Screening of cervical and breast cancer was low in both urban and rural areas, seeing no progress overtime. Cervical cancer screening was only 29% (urban) and 24% (rural) in 2018, presenting persisted top inequalities (SII 25% urban, 14% rural). CONCLUSION: China has made commendable progress in protecting the poorest for basic care. However, the 'leaving no one behind' agenda needs a strategy targeting the entire population rather than only the poorest. Blunt investing in primary healthcare facilities seems neither effective nor efficient.

Developing and implementing National Health Insurance: learnings from the first try in Benin.

In 2008, Benin government launched a national health insurance scheme, but this had been suspended in 2017. We aim to understand how existing ideas and institutions, stakeholders' behaviour and their interests shaped policy-making process and policy content, from its launch to its suspension. METHODS: We used a case study design, framed by the policy triangle of Walt and Gilson. We collected data through document review, quantitative data extraction from routine information, and interviews with 20 key informants. We performed a content analysis using both complementarily deductive and inductive analysis. RESULTS: This study confirms the keen interest for national health insurance scheme in Benin among various stakeholders. Compared with user fee exemption policies, it is considered as more sustainable, with a more reliable financing, and a greater likelihood to facilitate population's access to quality healthcare without financial hardships.Exempting the poor from paying health insurance premiums was however considered as an equitable mean to facilitate the extension of the health insurance to informal sector workers.The whole arrangements failed to deliver appropriate skills, tools, coordination and incentives to drive the policy implementers to make individual and organisational changes necessary to adjust to the objectives and values of the reform. These deficiencies compromised the implementation fidelity with unintended effects such as low subscription rate, low services utilisation and sustainability threats. CONCLUSION: Supporting countries in documenting policy processes will ease learning across their tries for progressing towards Universal Health Coverage, as more than one try will be necessary.

The impact of informal patient navigation initiatives on patient empowerment and National Health Insurance responsiveness in Indonesia.

BACKGROUND: Indonesia introduced a universal National Health Insurance (NHI) programme Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional (JKN) in 2014. However, challenges in timely consultation and access to health services resulted in the introduction of formal and informal patient navigation initiatives which facilitates access for patients. Informal patient navigation may emerge from the gaps in the services of the formal patient navigation. This study assesses how three informal non-government patient navigation initiatives emerged, are organised, operate and interact with JKN authorities to enhance patient empowerment and JKN responsiveness. METHODS: This was a qualitative study comprising of document review, semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and direct observations at JKN-contracted health facilities. Data was analysed deductively and inductively using Molyneux et al's accountability assessment framework to assess context, content, and process of the informal patient navigation initiatives. RESULTS: Our study found that informal patient navigation initiatives bridge a gap left by formal navigation initiatives. The navigators help spread awareness among patients of their benefits and entitlements and assist patients to communicate with health providers and authorities. However, we find limited effects on people's ability to navigate the system themselves, on systemic change, or on JKN responsiveness. CONCLUSION: We may know that when access to health services is challenged then formal or informal patient navigation initiatives to facilitate access for patients may emerge. What this study adds is how informal patient navigation bridge a gap left by formal navigation initiatives, from how they are organized, operate and interact with the NHI authorities. We demonstrate that in the absence of well-functioning formal navigation initiatives, the informal initiatives may fill a critical gap. However, their efforts are time intensive and do not translate across the population. What is implied here is that more is required from JKN authorities to enhance interaction with informal patient navigation to advance systemic change toward equitable access to NHI.

A Comprehensive Program to Reduce Tobacco-related Cancers Through Actions by a National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center.

Tobacco use accounts for 30% of all cancer-related deaths worldwide and 20% in the US, despite effective, evidence-based interventions for reducing tobacco use and tobacco-related cancers and deaths. In 2012, to reduce the burden of tobacco-related cancer and associated population-level risks across Texas, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center initiated the EndTobacco® program to promote statewide cancer control activities. We created evidence-based initiatives, established selection criteria, and implemented actions involving policy, education, and tobacco treatment services. As a result, EndTobacco has supported, educated, and convened local and state coalitions in policymaking; provided tobacco treatment education to health professionals; implemented Texas' only certified tobacco treatment training program; and led an initiative to enhance the tobacco-free culture of the state's publicly funded university system. Supported by commitments from MD Anderson, we developed and implemented evidence-based actions for tobacco control tailored to the center's mission, values, expertise, resources, and partnerships. By 2021, the adult smoking rate in Texas dropped from 19.2% (2014) to 13.2%. Contributors to this drop include state tobacco control policies, programs and services from multiple agencies and associations, and EndTobacco activities that complement the statewide effort to prevent youth smoking initiation and increase quit attempts among youth and adults.