Flow chart participant recruitment.

a Confirmation that a medical device meets the safety, health and environmental protection requirements of the European Economic Area (EEA) [28]. b devices intended for monitoring possibly dangerous changes in vital parameters [29].</p

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item.

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item.</p

Five-number summary of satisfaction scores overall and per device group, country, and cadre.

Five-number summary of satisfaction scores overall and per device group, country, and cadre.</p

Effectiveness outcome: Frequency of full task completion, task completion rates with 95% confidence intervals and p-values.

Effectiveness outcome: Frequency of full task completion, task completion rates with 95% confidence intervals and p-values.</p

Description of checklist variables.

Timely recognition and referral of severely ill children is especially critical in low-resource health systems. Pulse-oximeters can improve health outcomes of children by detecting hypoxaemia, a severity indicator of the most common causes of death in children. Cost-effectiveness of pulse-oximeters has been proven in low-income settings. However, evidence on their usability in community health settings is scarce.This study explores the usability of pulse-oximeters for community health and primary care workers in Cambodia, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Uganda. We collected observational data, through a nine-task checklist, and survey data, using a five-point Likert scale questionnaire, capturing three usability aspects (effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction) of single-probe fingertip and multi-probe handheld devices. Effectiveness was determined by checklist completion rates and task completion rates per checklist item. Efficiency was reported as proportion of successful assessments within three attempts. Standardized summated questionnaire scores (min = 0, max = 100) determined health worker’s satisfaction. Influencing factors on effectiveness and satisfaction were explored through hypothesis tests between independent groups (device type, cadre of health worker, country). Checklist completion rate was 78.3% [CI 72.6–83.0]. Choosing probes according to child age showed the lowest task completion rate of 68.7% [CI 60.3%-76.0%]. In 95.6% [CI 92.7%-97.4%] of assessments a reading was obtained within three attempts. The median satisfaction score was 95.6 [IQR = 92.2–99.0]. Significantly higher checklist completion rates were observed with single-probe fingertip devices (p</div

STROBE statement—checklist of items that should be included in reports of <i>cross-sectional studies</i>.

STROBE statement—checklist of items that should be included in reports of cross-sectional studies.</p

Efficiency outcome: Frequencies and percentages of successfull measurements.

Efficiency outcome: Frequencies and percentages of successfull measurements.</p

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item by age group.

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item by age group.</p

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item, pairwise deletion.

Frequency of task completion and task completion rates per checklist item, pairwise deletion.</p

Additional file 1 of A quasi-experimental study to estimate effectiveness of seasonal malaria chemoprevention in Aweil South County in Northern Bahr El Ghazal, South Sudan

Additional file 1. A graph representing the number of malaria-treated cases recorded per month in Aweil South during 2020. A table with the participant’s characteristics by county in Wave 2 survey. A table with the participants’ characteristics by county in Wave 3 survey. A table with the results of fully adjusted regression models (Model 3) for associations between SMC and caregiver-reported malaria outcomes among children aged 3–59 months using difference-in-differences analysis comparing Aweil South and Aweil West counties, June–November 2022. A table with the results of regression models for associations between SMC and caregiver-reported malaria outcomes among children aged 3–59 months using difference-in-differences analysis comparing Aweil South and Aweil West counties, June–November 2022