INFECTIOUS DISEASES: A CHALLENGE TO DEVELOPMENT

ABSTRACT: The 20th Anniversary of the Armauer Hansen Research Institute (AHRI) was commemorated by a symposium co-organized by AHRI, the Faculty of Medicine, Addis Ababa University and The Ethiopian Medical Doctors' Association. It was held on October 4 and 5, 1990 at the Tikur Anbessa (Black Lion) Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The twoday symposium was divided into six sessions which dealt with leprosy in general, control and prevention of leprosy and other communicable diseases, community health, malaria, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis. The symposium invited scientists from Africa, Europe, Asia, the Americas and Australia who presented and discussed papers on various aspects of the above topics. This report will attempt to highlight the central theme of the symposium as seen by three young scientists from different countries connected to AHRI. Dr.Genene Mengistu (Ethiopia) - formerly Counterpart at AHRI - is a lecturer in the Department of Microbiology & Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, and a Research scientist at the Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, Dr.Yahya Ipuge (Tanzania) a lecturer in the Department of Microbiology/Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Dar es Salaam is a holder of the AHRI African Fellowship and Dr.Tobias Rinke de Wit (Netherlands) is a Senior scientist at AHRI

A survey on leishmaniasis and the leishmanin skin test profile in Lower Awash Valley, northeast Ethiopia

No Abstract Available Ethiop.J.Health Dev. Vol.18(3) 2004: 159-16

Leishmaniases survey in the Awash Valley: The magnitude of positive leishmanin reaction and its pattern in the Middle Awash

Background: Both visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis are reckoned to be endemic in Ethiopia in magnitudes of undetermined prevalence and distribution. There is considerable information pertaining to the public health importance of leishmaniases in the lower course of the Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Nevertheless, there is evident gap of knowledge on these disease entities in the middle course of the Valley, where the current investigation has been carried out. Objectives: The study was conducted to get pertinent information regarding exposure to leishmanial parasites and to screen study subjects in the delineated course of the Valley for possible occurrence of clinical cases. Methods: Following screening for overt cases of leishmaniasis, a cross-sectional leishmanin skin test was undertaken in 926 individuals. The overall prevalence of leishmanin positivity in 889 (96%) of those who returned for reading of the test was about 40%. Nearly 60% of the males and about 25% of the females tested positive for the antigen. Positivity appeared to be increasing with age in both sexes. Variation in leishmanin response among the study localities was evident and this appeared to be influenced very much by the duration of stay in the area. This difference was found to be statistically significnt (X2=13.7;

Referral Service Barriers in Ethiopia: experiences and perceptions of actors.

AbstractBackground: Globally, about 2.8 million neonates and 295,000 mothers die annually. Almost two-third of these deaths are reported from Africa and Asia. The causes have been attributed to sepsis, asphyxia, prematurity, hemorrhage, obstructed labor, and hypertension. To save the lives of women and babies, the Ethiopian Ministry of Health developed and implemented a referral system which comprises a network of primary health care facilities, a guiding document, and established tracking mechanisms. However, there is limited information on barriers to effective patient referrals. This study aims to assess referral barriers at primary healthcare entities in four regional states of Ethiopia.Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional study design with mixed qualitative and quantitative methods. It was conducted in September 2019 in four purposively selected districts with high referral rates in Ethiopia. The quantitative data were collected for a one-month period from all 1,139 referral service beneficiaries or adult care takers in targeted health facilities using exit interviews. In addition, qualitative data was collected from 52 key informants using in-depth interviews. The quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS v20 and is presented using, tables, and figures. Qualitative data were transcribed verbatim were read and reread. Categories and themes that emerged and corresponding codes were labeled using open code software.Results: Out of 1,139 formally referred patients, 95% reported that no pre-referral communication occurred between referring and receiving facilities. On the qualitative data analysis, five themes emerged as follows: (1) Lack of provider communication skills, (2) lack of governing documents, (3) shortage of human resource, and (4) Lack of essential equipment in ambulance services, and (5) Lack of infrastructure.Conclusion: This study explored and described several referral service barriers in four regional states of Ethiopia. The referral service barriers were influenced by both individuals and health systems related factors. The investigators recommend implementing performance and quality improvement interventions to strengthen the referral systems. In addition, to address the barriers of referral system, improving the communication skills of health care providers was recommended. Furthermore, providing governing documents including referral protocol, referral service directory, and guidelines can solve some of the referral services barriers. Equipping ambulances with trained providers and lifesaving equipment, enhancing telephone lines and office facilities are recommended. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2021;35(SI-5):55-62]Keywords: referral, barrier, primary healthcare, experience, Ethiopi