Perspectives on Resuscitation Decisions at the Margin of Viability among Specialist Newborn Care Providers in Ghana and Ethiopia: A Qualitative Analysis.

BACKGROUND: In high income countries, guidelines exist recommending gestational age thresholds for offering and obligating neonatal resuscitation for extremely preterm infants. In low- and middle- income countries, this approach may be impractical due to limited/inconsistent resource availability and challenges in gestational dating. Scant literature exists on how clinicians in these settings conceptualize viability or make resuscitation decisions for premature infants. METHODS: Qualitative interviews of interprofessional neonatal clinicians were conducted in Kumasi, Ghana, at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and Suntreso Government Hospital, and in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at St. Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College. Transcribed interviews were coded through the constant comparative method. RESULTS: Three discrete major themes were identified. The principal theme was a respect for all life, regardless of the likelihood for survival. This sense of duty arose from a duty to God, a duty to the patient, and a duty intrinsic to one's role as a medical provider. The duty to resuscitate was balanced by the second major theme, an acceptance of futility for many premature infants. Lack of resources, inappropriate staffing, and historically high local neonatal mortality rates were often described. The third theme was a desire to meet global standards of newborn care, including having resources to adopt the 22-25-week thresholds used in high income countries and being able to consistently provide life-saving measures to premature infants. CONCLUSIONS: Neonatal clinicians in Ghana and Ethiopia described respect for all life and desire to meet global standards of newborn care, balanced with an awareness of futility based on local resource limitations. In both countries, clinicians highlighted how wide variations in regional survival outcomes limited their ability to rely on structured resuscitation guidelines based on gestational age and/or birthweight.

Provider perspectives on Asram in Ghana.

Neonatal mortality is one of the leading causes of under-five mortality globally, with the majority of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. In Ghana, there is a belief in an array of newborn conditions, called Asram, that are thought to have a spiritual, rather than physical, cause. These conditions are predominantly managed by traditional healers as they are considered unable to be treated by allopathic medical providers. Through a series of semi-structured qualitative interviews of medical providers in Kumasi, Ghana, conducted in July-August 2018, this study sought to elucidate perspectives of allopathic medical providers about Asram, including the perceived implications of traditional newborn care patterns on newborn health and higher-level neonatal care. Twenty health care providers participated and represented a tertiary care hospital and a district hospital. Medical providers were universally aware of Asram but varied on the latitude they gave this belief system within the arena of newborn care. Some providers rationalized the existence of Asram in the backdrop of high neonatal mortality rates and long-standing belief systems. Others highlighted their frustration with Asram, citing delays in care and complications due to traditional medical treatments. Providers utilized varying approaches to bridge culture gaps with families in their care and emphasized the importance of open communication with the shared goal of improved newborn health and survival. This study describes the importance of providers being aware of socio-cultural constructs within which pregnant women operate and suggests a focus on the shared goal of timely and effective newborn care in Ghana.

Experiences and training needs of healthcare providers involved in the care of Ghanaian adolescents living with HIV: an interventional study.

BACKGROUND: Caring for adolescents living with HIV/AIDS (ALHIV) can be overwhelming due to their unique needs. Ghana is currently among nine countries in West and Central Africa contributing to 90% of new paediatric infections in the sub-region with a growing population of ALHIV. Regardless, gaps in paediatric related care including healthcare providers (HCPs) capacity issues have been identified. This study sought to assess the competencies of adolescent-oriented healthcare providers before, and after interventionist training to inform recommendation that would guide the psychosocial care they give to ALHIV. METHODS: The study adopted a mixed methods approach with a non-randomized interventional study involving three-phase multi-methods. The sample consisted of 28 adolescent-oriented and multi-disciplinary healthcare providers at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital (CCTH) in Ghana. Data were obtained in three phases, namely, a baseline survey, interventionist training, and post-training in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were analyzed using Stata version 13 for descriptive analysis while the qualitative data were analyzed thematically using NVivo version 11. RESULTS: Although the majority of the HCPs claim to be knowledgeable about adolescent health issues (n = 21, 75.0%), only about a third (n = 10, 35.7%) could correctly define who an adolescent is. The majority (n = 18, 64.3%) had not received any training on how to work with the adolescent client. The main areas identified for improvement in the ALHIV care in phase 1 included issues with psychosocial assessment, communication and treatment adherence strategies, creating an adolescent-friendly work environment, and availability of job aids/protocols. During the post-training interviews, participants reported an improved understanding of the characteristics of an adolescent-friendly site and basic principles for ALHIV care. They were also able to correctly describe the widely used adolescent health assessment tool; the HEEADSSS. Post intervention interviews also revealed HCPs perception on increased practice related confidence levels and readiness to implement new knowledge and skills gained. CONCLUSION: This study has shown that targeted training on routine ALHIV care is effective in increasing HCPs knowledge, skills and confidence. Addressing the healthcare system/facility related gaps serves as an impetus for improved ALHIV care among HCPs.

Neonatal near-misses in Ghana: a prospective, observational, multi-center study.

BACKGROUND: For every newborn who dies within the first month, as many as eight more suffer life-threatening complications but survive (termed 'neonatal near-misses' (NNM)). However, there is no universally agreed-upon definition or assessment tool for NNM. This study sought to describe the development of the Neonatal Near-Miss Assessment Tool (NNMAT) for low-resource settings, as well as findings when implemented in Ghana. METHODS: This prospective, observational study was conducted at two tertiary care hospitals in southern Ghana from April - July 2015. Newborns with evidence of complications and those admitted to the NICUs were screened for inclusion using the NNMAT. Incidence of suspected NNM at enrollment and confirmed near-miss (surviving to 28 days) was determined and compared against institutional neonatal mortality rates. Suspected NNM cases were compared with newborns not classified as a suspected near-miss, and all were followed to 28 days to determine odds of survival. Confirmed near-misses were those identified as suspected near-misses at enrollment who survived to 28 days. The main outcome measures were incidence of NNM, NNM:mortality ratio, and factors associated with NNM classification. RESULTS: Out of 394 newborns with complications, 341 (86.5%) were initially classified as suspected near-misses at enrollment using the NNMAT, with 53 (13.4%) being classified as a non-near-miss. At 28-day follow-up, 68 (17%) had died, 52 (13%) were classified as a non-near-miss, and 274 were considered confirmed near-misses. Those newborns with complications who were classified as suspected near-misses using the NNMAT at enrollment had 12 times the odds of dying before 28 days than those classified as non-near-misses. While most confirmed near-misses qualified as NNM via intervention-based criteria, nearly two-thirds qualified based on two or more of the four NNMAT categories. When disaggregated, the most predictive elements of the NNMAT were gestational age < 33 weeks, neurologic dysfunction, respiratory dysfunction, and hemoglobin < 10 gd/dl. The ratio of near-misses to deaths was 0.55: 1, yet this varied across the study sites. CONCLUSIONS: This research suggests that the NNMAT is an effective tool for assessing neonatal near-misses in low-resource settings. We believe this approach has significant systems-level, continuous quality improvement, clinical and policy-level implications.

"We call them miracle babies": How health care providers understand neonatal near-misses at three teaching hospitals in Ghana.

Neonatal mortality is a significant problem in many low-resource countries, yet for every death there are many more newborns who suffer a life-threatening complication but survive. These "near-misses" are not well defined, nor are they well understood. This study sought to explore how health care providers at three tertiary care centers in Ghana (each with neonatal intensive care units (NICUs)) understand the term "near-miss." Eighteen providers from the NICUs at three teaching hospitals in Ghana (Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi, and Cape Coast Teaching Hospital in Cape Coast) were interviewed in depth regarding their perceptions of neonatal morbidity, mortality, and survival. Near the end of the interview, they were specifically asked what they understood the term "near-miss" to mean. Participants included nurses and physicians at various levels and with varying years of practice (mean years of practice = 9.33, mean years in NICU = 3.66). Results indicate that the concept of "near-misses" is not universally understood, and providers differ on whether a baby is a near-miss or not. Providers disagreed on the utility of a near-miss classification for clinical practice, with some suggesting it would be helpful to draw their attention to those at highest risk of dying, with others suggesting that the acuity of illness in a NICU means any baby could become a 'near-miss' at any moment. Further efforts are needed to standardize the definitions of neonatal near-misses, including developing criteria that are able to be assessed in a low-resource setting. In addition, further research is warranted to determine the practical implications of using a near miss tool in the process of providing care in a resource-limited setting and whether it might be best reserved as a retrospective indicator of overall quality of care provided.