Department of Nursing

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Browsing Department of Nursing by Subject "Cervical cancer"

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    Assessing the impact of cervical cancer integration into reproductive health networks: operations research from Uganda
    (International Population Conference, 2017) Nuccio, Olivia; Chowdhury, Raveena; Penfold-Taylor, Suzanne; Mesele, Tesfaye; Church, Kathryn; Meglioli, Alejandra; White, Heather; Kumakech, Edward
    The Cervical Cancer Screening and Preventive Therapy (CCS&PT) via Reproductive Health Networks initiative started in 2012, with the aim of improving health outcomes through the provision of services targeted at women at highest risk of cervical cancer (those aged 30-49). The project integrates CCS&PT into existing sexual and reproductive health service networks in four sub-Saharan African countries (Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda). Operations research was conducted in Uganda to assess how well screening services were being provided within the existing networks and to describe the modes and effectiveness of referral methods for further treatment when required. A mixed-methods observational study design included analysis of routine data, quantitative cross-sectional surveys, in-depth interviews, and a referral assessment survey. Data were collected between October and November 2015. Public health impacts were demonstrated, with high proportions of clients reached who had never been screened before, and were in the target age group of 30-49. Opportunities to expand access to treatment were highlighted, with a need to overcome cost and other barriers. Providers reported both benefits and drawbacks of CCS introduction. Encouragingly, integrating CCS&PT provision into SRH care appeared to increase demand for other, complementary services, specifically family planning.
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    Integration of HIV and cervical cancer screening perceptions of healthcare providers and policy makers in Uganda
    (BMC Public Health, 2014) Kumakech, Edward; Andersson, Sören; Wabinga, Henry; Berggren, Vanja
    Background: HIV-positive women have an increased risk of developing cervical cancer (CC) compared to the HIV-negative women. Despite this, HIV and CC screening programs in many developing countries have remained disintegrated. Therefore, the objective of the study was to explore perceptions of healthcare providers (HCP) and policy makers (PM) about integration of HIV and CC screening services in Uganda. Methods: This was a qualitative study conducted among 16 participants comprising of 12 healthcare providers and 4 policy makers in Uganda. Data were collected through individual interviews. Participants were purposively selected from different level of health facilities with clinics for HIV and CC screening services. Content analysis method was used to analyze the data. Results: Three themes emerged from the data, namely appreciating benefits of integration, worrying about the limited health system capacity and potential consequences of integration and feeling optimistic about integration under improved health system conditions. The benefits embraced the women – particularly the HIV-positive women- but also men, healthcare providers and the health system or the government. There were worries that HIV stigma and shortage of healthcare workers would affect the effective delivery of the integrated program. Conclusion: Integration of HIV and CC screening can offer manifold benefits to all stakeholders in the health system, more so to the women. However, its feasibility in developing countries such as Uganda will most likely be hampered by weak and inefficient health systems. Therefore, when considering HIV and CC screening integration, it is important not to only recognize the benefits but also take into account resources requirements for addressing the existing weaknesses and inefficiencies in the health systems such as limited infrastructure, insufficient drugs and supplies, inadequate and poorly motivated healthcare workers.
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    Open Access Integration of HIV and cervical cancer screening perceptions and preferences of communities in Uganda
    (BMC women's health, 2015) Kumakech, Edward; Andersson, Sören; Wabinga, Henry; Berggren, Vanja
    Background: Despite the fact that HIV-positive women carry an increased risk of developing cervical cancer (CC) in comparison with HIV-negative women, HIV and CC screening programs in many developing countries have remained unintegrated. The objective of this study is to explore perceptions and preferences of community members in Uganda, including women, men, and village health teams, regarding the integration of HIV and CC screening services in a single-visit approach. Methods: This qualitative study was conducted in three districts in Uganda. Data were collected through focus group discussions with women and village health teams, and individual interviews with men. Respondents were purposely selected from among those linked to three CC clinics in the three districts. The content analysis method was used to analyze the data. Results: Three themes emerged from the data, namely appreciating the benefits of integration, worrying about the challenges of integration, and preferences for integration. The women endorsed the benefits. However, there were worries that integration would prolong the waiting time at the health facility and induce tiredness in both the healthcare providers and the women. There were also fears of being found positive for both HIV and CC and the consequences such as stress, self-isolation, and social conflicts. Participants, particularly the women, considered the challenges of screening integration to be manageable by, for example, taking a day off work to visit the hospital, delegating house chores to other family members, or taking a packed lunch on visiting the hospital. Conclusions: The community members in Uganda perceive the benefits of HIV and CC screening integration to outweigh the challenges, and expect that the challenges can be minimized or managed by the women. Therefore, when considering HIV and CC screening integration, it is important to not only recognize the benefits but also take into consideration the perceived challenges and preferences of community members.