Quality of tuberculosis care in six health facilities of Afar Region, Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Quality tuberculosis care plays an important role in the status of tuberculosis (TB) control, treatment completion and adherence. Nonetheless, very little is known about the quality of TB care in public health facilities in Ethiopia. In this study we assessed the quality of TB care delivery in Afar Region of Ethiopia. METHODS: A descriptive cross sectional health institution based survey with both semi-structured and structured questionnaires was employed. A mix of complementary techniques was administered Data were collected between 5th February and 10th March 2007 from six health institutions. Records were reviewed for 270 patients, exit interviews were made for 209 patients, six providers were interviewed & 49 patients were observed Data was collected by trained nurses and analyzed using SPSS 11.0 statistical software. RESULTS: The study had showed that delivery of materials, drugs and supplies for tuberculosis control activities were fairly good. Staffing qualities were poor and patterns of supervision were weak. A relatively higher proportion of patients were dissatisfied with the appropriateness and adequacy of working hours (63.6%) and waiting time (70.3%). Statistically significant correlation was observed between process quality and output quality (clients' satisfaction) parameters (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Continues quality improvement mechanisms to improve the different aspects of the programme and adherence to the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Program guideline could be important interventions to enhance the quality of care delivery. An expanded community-based study to better guide quality DOTS program in pastoralist communities is crucial.

Discussäo de alguns aspectos da padronizaçäo do pessoal de saúde na técnica do teste de Mitsuda / Discussion of various aspects of the health personnel standartization at technique of Mitsuda test

Os profissionais dos serviços de saúde (das unidades de saúde do Município de Säo Paulo) responsáveis pela aplicaçäo e leitura do teste de Mitsuda realizam esta atividade de diferentes maneiras. Este trabalho apresenta algumas alternativas para o processo de padronizaçäo do pessoal de saúde que executa o teste de Mitsuda, principalmente no que se refere aos aspectos de leitura e aplicaçäo, visando garantir a homogeneidade do procedimento

Evaluation of disability knowledge and skills among leprosy workers.

The leprosy workers' knowledge and skills regarding disability prevention and control were quantified by a specially designed Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). The scorings were similar and showed no significant difference between supervisors and peripheral workers. It is suggested that the training component of disability control should be improved with emphasis on problem-oriented learning.