Community-based active tuberculosis case finding using a symptom-based screening tool in the Volta Region, Ghana

Ntow, George Edward; Kweku, Margaret; Aninagyei, Enoch; Duedu, Kwabena Obeng

doi:10.1016/j.ijid.2020.09.1439

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…The study found knowledge about tuberculosis to be above average. Similar studies [20,21] also reported high knowledge of tuberculosis among the study participants. Over fifty percent of the participants could accurately identify TB infection as a disease caused by a bacterium.…”

Section: Accessibility Of Tuberculosis Diagnostic Services/ Facilitiessupporting

confidence: 82%

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Factors Affecting Tuberculosis Case Detection in Kwahu East District of the Eastern Region, Ghana - A Health Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study among TB Patients

Kabiri¹,

Anthony²,

Kofi³

et al. 2022

J Infect Dis Epidemiol

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Introduction:Tuberculosis is ranked the second cause of mortalities in the world only behind the deadly COVID-19. The disease is very communicable especially in poorly ventilated environments and crowded places. High risk of transmission from patients to health workers and then to the general population has been a great worry for the tuberculosis control programme worldwide. While great efforts has been made to improve case detection and improve treatment outcomes using DOTS most districts in Africa still fall below the expected target. This study explored factors affecting TB case detection in Kwahu East District of the Eastern Region of Ghana. Methodology:A cross-sectional study involving 138 tuberculosis patients on treatment was used. A nonprobability sampling method (i.e., convenient sampling technique) was employed to study the TB patients due to the availability of the participants at the various treatment centres. A structured questionnaire was used to interview participants and the results analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Data was presented in tables and figures in the form of descriptive statistics. Results:The result revealed that100 were males (72.46%) and 38 (27.54%) were females. The level of knowledge was above average (52.9%) among the TB patients. Majority of the TB patients reported to have suffered one form of stigmatization (weighted stigma score is 3.0). While the health facility remained the most reliable place for TB care most, TB cases reported they rather sought treatment from Prayer Camp (44.2%) as the number one choice. Reasons for choice of treatment place were distance (41.3%), cost (33.3%), belief of effective treatment outcome (10.1%) and shortage of medications (28.3%). Conclusion:In conclusion, the study revealed that knowledge about TB was above average. However, factors such as stigmatization, poor accessibility and shortage of medications affect TB case detection in the district. Conscious efforts should therefore be made to improve access, regular supply of medications and reduce stigmatization in the community and health facilities.

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Section: Accessibility Of Tuberculosis Diagnostic Services/ Facilitiessupporting

confidence: 82%

“…However, out of the 40 health facilities in the district, only 5 of them are participants had poor knowledge. Some participants associated TB infection to ancestral curses, witchcraft and bad odour [20]. The poor knowledge as established is a major challenge that health professionals must take immediate steps to address.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors Affecting Tuberculosis Case Detection in Kwahu East District of the Eastern Region, Ghana - A Health Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study among TB Patients

Kabiri¹,

Anthony²,

Kofi³

et al. 2022

J Infect Dis Epidemiol

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Health service providers’ perspective on barriers and strategies to tuberculosis treatment adherence in Obuasi Municipal and Obuasi East District in the Ashanti region, Ghana: a qualitative study

Appiah,

Arthur,

Asampong

et al. 2024

Discov Health Systems

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Background Despite the substantial improvement in treatment success rate over the past two decades in Ghana, some districts in the country still record high rates of tuberculosis (TB) deaths and lost-to-follow-up. The high incidence of these adverse outcomes suggests that the TB programme is not performing well in these districts which could be due to some barriers in the programme implementation. This paper explored the perspectives of healthcare providers on the barriers to TB treatment adherence and the potential strategies to address them in two high-burden districts in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Methods This study utilised an explorative qualitative study design among 16 purposively selected healthcare providers directly involved in TB care in the Obuasi Municipal and Obuasi East District. Key informant interviews were used to collect data, which were audio-recorded and transcribed word-for-word. The transcriptions were then imported into Atlas.ti version 8.4 software for thematic content analysis. Results Findings from this study revealed significant socioeconomic and individual barriers to TB treatment adherence. Key socioeconomic barriers included income insecurity, transportation cost, food insecurity, lack of public education on TB and frequent shortage of TB diagnostic tools. The individual barriers identified were misconception of TB causation, perceived full recovery after intensive phase treatment, inadequate patient privacy and noncompliance to treatment transfer protocol. The strategies recommended by healthcare providers to address these barriers were home-based treatment, provision of food incentives, frequent education on TB, and usage of reminder systems for follow-ups. Conclusion The barriers to TB treatment adherence from the healthcare providers’ perspective were mainly socioeconomic and individual. The suggested strategies offer actionable steps towards addressing these barriers. Thus, it is recommended that the TB programme and other supporting stakeholders take into account these barriers and adopt these strategies when planning for TB control to enhance treatment adherence and improve patient health outcomes.

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Community-based active tuberculosis case finding using a symptom-based screening tool in the Volta Region, Ghana

Cited by 2 publications

References 14 publications

Factors Affecting Tuberculosis Case Detection in Kwahu East District of the Eastern Region, Ghana - A Health Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study among TB Patients

Factors Affecting Tuberculosis Case Detection in Kwahu East District of the Eastern Region, Ghana - A Health Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study among TB Patients

Health service providers’ perspective on barriers and strategies to tuberculosis treatment adherence in Obuasi Municipal and Obuasi East District in the Ashanti region, Ghana: a qualitative study

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