Improving acute myocardial infarction care in northern Tanzania: barrier identification and implementation strategy mapping.

BACKGROUND: Evidence-based care for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) reduces morbidity and mortality. Prior studies in Tanzania identified substantial gaps in the uptake of evidence-based AMI care. Implementation science has been used to improve uptake of evidence-based AMI care in high-income settings, but interventions to improve quality of AMI care have not been studied in sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS: Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants from key stakeholder groups (patients, providers, and healthcare administrators) in northern Tanzania. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted using a guide informed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). Interview transcripts were coded to identify barriers to AMI care, using the 39 CFIR constructs. Barriers relevant to emergency department (ED) AMI care were retained, and the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) tool was used to match barriers with Level 1 recommendations for targeted implementation strategies. RESULTS: Thirty key stakeholders, including 10 patients, 10 providers, and 10 healthcare administrators were enrolled. Thematic analysis identified 11 barriers to ED-based AMI care: complexity of AMI care, cost of high-quality AMI care, local hospital culture, insufficient diagnostic and therapeutic resources, inadequate provider training, limited patient knowledge of AMI, need for formal implementation leaders, need for dedicated champions, failure to provide high-quality care, poor provider-patient communication, and inefficient ED systems. Seven of these barriers had 5 strong ERIC recommendations: access new funding, identify and prepare champions, conduct educational meetings, develop educational materials, and distribute educational materials. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple barriers across several domains limit the uptake of evidence-based AMI care in northern Tanzania. The CFIR-ERIC mapping approach identified several targeted implementation strategies for addressing these barriers. A multi-component intervention is planned to improve uptake of evidence-based AMI care in Tanzania.

Experiences of Black Adults Evaluated in a Locked Psychiatric Emergency Unit: A Qualitative Study.

OBJECTIVE: Evidence shows that Black individuals have higher rates of coercive emergency psychiatric interventions than other racialized groups, yet no studies have elevated the voices of Black patients undergoing emergency psychiatric evaluation. This qualitative study sought to explore the experiences of Black individuals who had been evaluated in a locked psychiatric emergency unit (PEU). METHODS: Electronic health records were used to identify and recruit adult patients (ages ≥18 years) who self-identified as Black and who had undergone evaluation in a locked PEU at a large academic medical center. In total, 11 semistructured, one-on-one interviews were conducted by telephone, exploring experiences during psychiatric evaluation. Transcripts were analyzed with thematic analysis. RESULTS: Participants shared experiences of criminalization, stigma, and vulnerability before and during their evaluation. Although participants described insight into their desire and need for treatment and identified helpful aspects of the care they received, they noted a mismatch between their expectations of treatment and the treatment received. CONCLUSIONS: This study reveals six major patient-identified themes that supplement a growing body of quantitative evidence demonstrating that racialized minority groups endure disproportionate rates of coercive interventions during emergency psychiatric evaluation. Interdisciplinary systemic changes are urgently needed to address structural barriers to equitable psychiatric care.

Feasibility, Acceptability, and Potential Cost-Effectiveness of a Novel Mobile Phone Intervention to Promote Human Immunodeficiency Virus Testing Within Social Networks in Tanzania.

ABSTRACT: Among 145 individuals surveyed in Tanzania, 42% indicated willingness to test for human immunodeficiency virus in response to a confidential, phone-based text message. On average, participants were likely to provide contact information for 1.5 members of their social networks, suggesting high feasibility and moderate acceptability of a novel mHealth human immunodeficiency virus testing intervention.

Association of Black Race With Physical and Chemical Restraint Use Among Patients Undergoing Emergency Psychiatric Evaluation.

OBJECTIVE: Few studies have examined the disproportionate use of restraints for Black adults receiving emergency psychiatric care. This study sought to determine whether the odds of physical and chemical restraint use were higher for Black patients undergoing emergency psychiatric care compared with their White counterparts. METHODS: This single-center retrospective cohort study examined 12,977 unique encounters of adults receiving an emergency psychiatric evaluation between January 1, 2014, and September 18, 2020, at a large academic medical center in Durham, North Carolina. Self-reported race categories were extracted from the electronic medical record. Primary outcomes were the presence of a behavioral physical restraint order or chemical restraint administration during the emergency department encounter. Covariates included age, sex, ethnicity, height, time of arrival, positive urine drug screen results, peak blood alcohol concentration, and diagnosis of a bipolar or psychotic disorder. RESULTS: A total of 961 (7.4%) encounters involved physical restraint, and 2,047 (15.8%) involved chemical restraint. Models with and without a race covariate were compared by using quasi-likelihood information criterion scores; in each instance, the model with race performed better than the model without. Black patients were more likely to be physically (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=1.35; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.07-1.72) and chemically (AOR=1.33; 95% CI=1.15-1.55) restrained than White patients. CONCLUSIONS: After analyses were adjusted for measured confounders, Black patients undergoing psychiatric evaluation were at higher odds of experiencing physical or chemical restraint compared with White patients, which is consistent with the growing body of evidence revealing racial disparities in psychiatric care.

Missed opportunities for timely diagnosis of pediatric lupus in South Africa: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a serious multisystem autoimmune disease, which is more aggressive in children and people of African descent. In South Africa, pediatric SLE (pSLE) patients are at high risk for severe disease. Similar to pSLE worldwide, South African children and adolescents with SLE require subspecialized medical care. The aim of this study is to describe the care-seeking experiences of families and examine factors that contribute to delays in the diagnosis of pSLE. Specifically, we sought to identify factors to inform interventions that support the timely referral and diagnosis of pediatric SLE patients in South Africa. METHODS: In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 caregivers of pSLE patients recruited from two government hospitals in Cape Town, South Africa in 2014. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for themes related to barriers to diagnosis. RESULTS: Six themes were identified and classified as either caregiver or health system barriers to diagnosis. Caregiver barriers included lack of knowledge regarding SLE, financial difficulties, and the social stigma of SLE. Health system barriers were lack of trained staff, a complex medical system, and misdiagnosis. CONCLUSION: Caregivers reported missed opportunities for diagnosing pSLE in their children. Raising public awareness may improve caregiver awareness and reduce stigma of pSLE. Improving family education at diagnosis holds potential to increase patient-physician trust and mitigate fear. Education modules for primary care providers at initial point of contact with the health care system may improve recognition of early pSLE and facilitate expedited referral to a specialist.

When "need plus supply" does not equal demand: challenges in uptake of depression treatment in HIV clinical care.

OBJECTIVE: Depression is common among patients in HIV care and is associated with worse HIV-related health behaviors and outcomes. Effective depression treatment is available, yet depression remains widely underdiagnosed and undertreated in HIV care. METHODS: As part of a multisite, randomized trial of depression treatment in HIV clinical care, the proportion of positive depression screens that resulted in study enrollment and reasons for nonenrollment were examined. RESULTS: Over 33 months, patients completed 9,765 depression screens; 19% were positive for depression, and of these 88% were assessed for study eligibility. Of assessed positive screens, 11% resulted in study enrollment. Nonenrollment after a positive screen was sometimes dictated by the study eligibility criteria, but it was often related to potentially modifiable provider- or patient-level barriers. CONCLUSIONS: Addressing patient- and provider-level barriers to engaging in depression treatment will be critical to maximize the reach of depression treatment services for HIV patients.

Effect of free distribution of safety equipment on usage among motorcycle-taxi drivers in Tanzania--A cluster randomised controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: Deaths due to road traffic injuries, particularly motorcycle crashes, have increased rapidly in many African nations and context-specific strategies to improve preventative behaviours are needed. Although adhering to conspicuity measures by wearing reflective safety vests is a highly effective crash prevention strategy and mandated by law among motorcycle-taxi drivers in some African countries, actual use is currently low. We aimed to test whether eliminating cost-barriers through the provision of free reflective, fluorescent motorcycle safety vests would lead to increased utilisation among a high-risk population of motorcycle-taxi drivers in Tanzania. METHODS: A cluster randomised controlled trial was conducted among 180 motorcycle-taxi drivers. Participants randomised to the intervention arm (90) received free, reflective, fluorescent vests; participants randomised to the control arm (90) did not receive free vests. Participants' use of reflective vests was then observed on city streets over a three month period and differential uptake was estimated using mixed-effects logistic regression. RESULTS: Baseline use of reflective vests was 3.3% in both arms. Seventy-nine drivers in the intervention arm and 82 drivers in the control arm were observed during follow-up. The average proportion of observations during which motorcycle drivers were using a reflective vest was 9.5% in the intervention arm, compared to 2.0% in the control arm (odds ratio: 5.5, 95% confidence interval: 1.1-26.9, p-value: 0.04). CONCLUSION: Although distribution of free reflective vests led to a statistically significant increase in vest usage, the absolute increase was modest. Additional strategies beyond removing economic barriers are important to augment adherence to road safety behaviours for injury prevention.

Prevalence and predictors of giving birth in health facilities in Bugesera District, Rwanda.

BACKGROUND: The proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel is one of two indicators used to measure progress towards Millennium Development Goal 5, which aims for a 75% reduction in global maternal mortality ratios by 2015. Rwanda has one of the highest maternal mortality ratios in the world, estimated between 249-584 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. The objectives of this study were to quantify secular trends in health facility delivery and to identify factors that affect the uptake of intrapartum healthcare services among women living in rural villages in Bugesera District, Eastern Province, Rwanda. METHODS: Using census data and probability proportional to size cluster sampling methodology, 30 villages were selected for community-based, cross-sectional surveys of women aged 18-50 who had given birth in the previous three years. Complete obstetric histories and detailed demographic data were elicited from respondents using iPad technology. Geospatial coordinates were used to calculate the path distances between each village and its designated health center and district hospital. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were used to identify factors associated with delivery in health facilities. RESULTS: Analysis of 3106 lifetime deliveries from 859 respondents shows a sharp increase in the percentage of health facility deliveries in recent years. Delivering a penultimate baby at a health facility (OR = 4.681 [3.204 - 6.839]), possessing health insurance (OR = 3.812 [1.795 - 8.097]), managing household finances (OR = 1.897 [1.046 - 3.439]), attending more antenatal care visits (OR = 1.567 [1.163 - 2.112]), delivering more recently (OR = 1.438 [1.120 - 1.847] annually), and living closer to a health center (OR = 0.909 [0.846 - 0.976] per km) were independently associated with facility delivery. CONCLUSIONS: The strongest correlates of facility-based delivery in Bugesera District include previous delivery at a health facility, possession of health insurance, greater financial autonomy, more recent interactions with the health system, and proximity to a health center. Recent structural interventions in Rwanda, including the rapid scale-up of community-financed health insurance, likely contributed to the dramatic improvement in the health facility delivery rate observed in our study.

A brief assessment of learning for orphaned and abandoned children in low and middle income countries.

Assessment of children's learning and performance in low and middle income countries has been critiqued as lacking a gold standard, an appropriate norm reference group, and demonstrated applicability of assessment tasks to the context. This study was designed to examine the performance of three nonverbal and one adapted verbal measure of children's problem solving, memory, motivation, and attention across five culturally diverse sites. The goal was to evaluate the tests as indicators of individual differences affected by life events and care circumstances for vulnerable children. We conclude that the measures can be successfully employed with fidelity in non-standard settings in LMICs, and are associated with child age and educational experience across the settings. The tests can be useful in evaluating variability in vulnerable child outcomes.

A cost-effectiveness analysis of alternative HIV retesting strategies in sub-saharan Africa.

BACKGROUND: Guidelines in sub-Saharan Africa on when HIV-seronegative persons should retest range from never to annually for lower-risk populations and from annually to every 3 months for high-risk populations. METHODS: We designed a mathematical model to compare the cost-effectiveness of alternative HIV retesting frequencies. Cost of HIV counseling and testing, linkage to care, treatment costs, disease progression, and mortality, and HIV transmission are modeled for three hypothetical cohorts with posited annual HIV incidence of 0.8%, 1.3%, and 4.0%, respectively. The model compared costs, quality-adjusted life-years gained, and secondary infections averted from testing intervals ranging from 3 months to 30 years. Input parameters from sub-Saharan Africa were used and explored in sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: Accounting for secondary infections averted, the most cost-effective testing frequency was every 7.5 years for 0.8% incidence, every 5 years for 1.3% incidence, and every 2 years for 4.0% incidence. Optimal testing strategies and their relative cost-effectiveness were most sensitive to assumptions about HIV counseling and testing and treatment costs, rates of CD4 decline, rates of HIV transmission, and whether tertiary infections averted were taken into account. CONCLUSIONS: While higher risk populations merit more frequent HIV testing than low risk populations, regular retesting is beneficial even in low-risk populations. Our data demonstrate benefits of tailoring testing intervals to resource constraints and local HIV incidence rates.

Validation, performance under field conditions, and cost-effectiveness of Capillus HIV-1/HIV-2 and determine HIV-1/2 rapid human immunodeficiency virus antibody assays using sequential and parallel testing algorithms in Tanzania.

Rapid human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibody tests support the effort to expand access to HIV testing and counseling services in remote, rural, and poor parts of the world. We validated the Capillus HIV-1/HIV-2 (Trinity Biotech PLC, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland) and Determine HIV-1/2 (Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, IL) rapid tests in a reference laboratory using patient samples from Tanzania and evaluated the performance of the tests under field conditions in northern Tanzania. We used the resulting data to study sequential and parallel testing algorithms. In the validation study, sensitivity, specificity, the predictive value of a positive test (PV(+)), and the predictive value of a negative test (PV(-)) were all 100% for Capillus and Determine. In the field evaluation among 12,737 clients, sensitivity, specificity, PV(+), and PV(-) were 99.7%, 99.8%, 98.7%, and 99.9%, respectively, for Capillus and 99.6%, 99.9%, 99.5%, and 99.9%, respectively, for Determine. A sequential testing algorithm that did not confirm a negative initial Capillus result with a Determine result cost $7.77 per HIV diagnosis but missed 0.3% of HIV infections. A sequential testing algorithm that did not confirm a negative initial Determine result with a Capillus result cost $7.64 per HIV diagnosis but missed 0.4% of HIV infections. A parallel testing algorithm cost $13.46 per HIV diagnosis but detected more HIV-infected clients.

Predictors of incomplete adherence, virologic failure, and antiviral drug resistance among HIV-infected adults receiving antiretroviral therapy in Tanzania.

BACKGROUND: Access to antiretroviral therapy is rapidly expanding in sub-Saharan Africa. Identifying the predictors of incomplete adherence, virologic failure, and antiviral drug resistance is essential to achieving long-term success. METHODS: A total of 150 subjects who had received antiretroviral therapy for at least 6 months completed a structured questionnaire and adherence assessment, and plasma human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) RNA levels were measured. Virologic failure was defined as an HIV RNA level >400 copies/mL; for patients with an HIV RNA level >1000 copies/mL, genotypic antiviral drug resistance testing was performed. Predictors were analyzed using bivariable and multivariable logistic regression models. RESULTS: A total of 23 (16%) of 150 subjects reported incomplete adherence. Sacrificing health care for other necessities (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 19.8; P<.01) and the proportion of months receiving self-funded treatment (AOR, 23.5; P=.04) were associated with incomplete adherence. Virologic failure was identified in 48 (32%) of 150 subjects and was associated with incomplete adherence (AOR, 3.6; P=.03) and the proportion of months receiving self-funded antiretroviral therapy (AOR, 13.0; P=.02). Disclosure of HIV infection status to family members or others was protective against virologic failure (AOR, 0.10; P=.04). CONCLUSIONS: Self-funded treatment was associated with incomplete adherence and virologic failure, and disclosure of HIV infection status was protective against virologic failure. Efforts to provide free antiretroviral therapy and to promote social coping may enhance adherence and reduce rates of virologic failure.

Antiretroviral treatment strategies in resource-limited settings.

To date, a minority of persons living with HIV worldwide has benefited from the advances in HIV therapeutics fueled by the scientific community, policy-makers, advocates, and the pharmaceutical industry in the global North. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that access to highly active antiretroviral therapy can be successfully scaled-up in less wealthy nations in the South. High rates of adherence correspond with clinical, immunologic, and virologic outcomes similar to those seen in wealthier nations. Recent reports of successful programs highlight the provision of free care, reliance on the international funding sources, and proactive adherence counseling. As access to antiretroviral therapy has improved, there is an urgent need to develop better strategies for initiating and monitoring therapy, including the scale-up of viral load testing.

Cost-effectiveness of free HIV voluntary counseling and testing through a community-based AIDS service organization in Northern Tanzania.

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of fee-based and free testing strategies at an HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) program integrated into a community-based AIDS service organization in Moshi, Tanzania. METHODS: We waived the usual fee schedule during a 2-week free, advertised VCT campaign; analyzed the number of clients testing per day during prefree, free, and postfree testing periods; and estimated the cost-effectiveness of limited and sustained free testing strategies. RESULTS: The number of clients testing per day increased from 4.1 during the prefree testing interval to 15.0 during the free testing campaign (P<.0001) and remained significantly increased at 7.1 (P<.0001) after resumption of the standard fees. HIV seroprevalence (16.7%) and risk behaviors were unchanged over these intervals. Modeled over 1 year, the costs per infection averted with the standard fee schedule, with a 2-week free VCT campaign, and with sustained free VCT year-round were $170, $105, and $92, respectively, and the costs per disability-adjusted life year gained were $8.72, $5.40, and $4.72, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The provision of free VCT enhances both the number of clients testing per day and its cost-effectiveness in resource-limited settings.