Oxygen provision to fight COVID-19 in sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

The adequate provision of medical oxygen is going to make the difference between life and death for the majority of patients with COVID-19 in Africa. ► Sub-Saharan African countries lack affordable and reliable oxygen supply. ► There is evidence from sub-Saharan Africa for why medical oxygen provision must be made a regional urgent priority. ► Efforts being made in some African countries demonstrate how oxygen provision can be scaled up through innovative cheap technologies. Contributors FM has conceived of the work and substantially contributed to its writing and analysis. FS has substantially contributed to its writing and analysis. MW, GB and MP have substantially contributed to the analysis. All five authors have drafted and revised the text. They all have provided final approval of the version to be published and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work with respect to its accuracy and research integrity.

Utilization cost of maternity services for childbirth among pregnant women with coronavirus disease 2019 in Nigeria’s epicenter

“…This is despite oxygen being the second most important component for COVID-19 care. [16] In our study, no woman reported giving any gifts to health workers. With so much caution being taken with care of pregnant women with COVID-19, it might be the case that the women are simply not giving gifts.…”

The impact of COVID-19 measures on children with disabilities and their families in Uganda

“…Lessons learned from the HIV pandemic to combat the spread and mitigate the response were shared (Hargreaves et al 2020). Concerns were raised regarding availability of oxygen supply (Fenton 2020;Stein et al 2020), critical care beds and well-trained staff (Ohia, Bakarey, and Ahmad 2020;Sonenthal et al 2020) as well as laboratory testing capacity in the region, which were lacking pre-pandemic (Oladimeji, Atiba, and Adeyinka 2020). Barriers to the public's adherence to COVID-19 prevention measures were cited in some African countries, including religious and cultural beliefs and practices in Sudan (Hezima et al 2020) and South Africa (Jaja, Anyanwu, and Jaja 2020), poor health-seeking behaviour in Ethiopia (Shigute et al 2020), and general distrust of the government in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Whembolua and Tshiswaka 2020).…”

Global Population Aging, National Development Level, and Vulnerability to the Pandemic

“…Less developed areas may face greater challenges, due to a lack of necessary medical devices, such as ventilators and personal protective equipment. 39 , 40 The long-standing social vulnerability and worse coverage of their health systems can impose great risk on underdeveloped areas when faced with public-health crises. 41 , 42 Also, comparatively worse public administration and policy response and lower education and economic levels in less developed areas may also contribute to higher risks of mortality in this pandemic.…”