Scovia Mbalinda

Perceptions and valuation of a community-based education and service (COBES) program in Uganda

Background: Community-based education and service (COBES) has been promoted to improve the education of health professionals, particularly in low-resource settings. However, few evaluations have been performed to guide program development. Aim: This study assessed student and educator perceptions and valuation of a Ugandan COBES program. Methods: We administered an internet-based survey to students, faculty, and site tutors associated with the Makerere University College of Health Sciences COBES program. Results: 255 surveys were completed. Response rates varied (students, 188/684, 27.5%; faculty-site supervisors, 15/23, 65.2%; faculty general, 38/312, 12.2%; site tutors, 14/27, 51.9%). Students valued the COBES program (93.5% some/high value). Tutors enjoyed their work (92.9% agreeing/strongly agreeing). Faculty (n = 53) felt COBES was valuable (90.2% agreeing/strongly agreeing). High student valuation was associated with high quality accommodation (aOR 4.7, 95% CI = 1.6–13.4), free accommodation (aOR 2.9, 95% CI = 1.2–6.8), and tutors who demonstrated enthusiasm for teaching (aOR 3.4, 95% CI = 1.1–10.0). Areas identified for improvement included financial support, student preparation, and tutor training, feedback, and supervision. Conclusion: In this study, COBES was perceived positively by students and educators and learning environment and quality of teaching both contributed to valuation of COBES. Well-implemented COBES programs may offer an opportunity to enhance health sciences education.

Lessons learnt from comprehensive evaluation of community-based education in Uganda: a proposal for an ideal model community-based education for health professional training institutions

BackgroundCommunity-based education (CBE) can provide contextual learning that addresses manpower scarcity by enabling trainees acquire requisite experiences, competence, confidence and values. In Uganda, many health professional training institutions conduct some form of community-based education (CBE). However, there is scanty information on the nature of the training: whether a curriculum exists (objectives, intended outcomes, content, implementation strategy), administration and constraints faced. The objective was to make a comprehensive assessment of CBE as implemented by Ugandan health professional training institutions to document the nature of CBE conducted and propose an ideal model with minimum requirements for health professional training institutions in Uganda.MethodsWe employed several methods: documentary review of curricula of 22 institutions, so as to assess the nature, purpose, outcomes, and methods of instruction and assessment; site visits to these institutions and their CBE sites, to assess the learning environment (infrastructure and resources); in-depth interviews with key people involved in running CBE at the institutions and community, to evaluate CBE implementation, challenges experienced and perceived solutions.ResultsCBE was perceived differently ranging from a subject, a course, a program or a project. Despite having similar curricula, institutions differ in the administration, implementation and assessment of CBE. Objectives of CBE, the curricula content and implementation strategies differ in similar institutions. On collaborative and social learning, most trainees do not reside in the community, though they work on group projects and write group reports. Lectures and skills demonstrations were the main instruction methods. Assessment involved mainly continuous assessment, oral or written reports and summative examination.ConclusionThis assessment identified deficiencies in the design and implementation of CBE at several health professional training institutions, with major flaws identified in curriculum content, supervision of trainees, inappropriate assessment, trainee welfare, and underutilization of opportunities for contextual and collaborative learning. Since CBE showed potential to benefit the trainees, community and institutions, we propose a model that delivers a minimum package of CBE and overcomes the wide variation in the concept, conduct and implementation of CBE.

Stigma in AIDS Nursing Care in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean:

Some nurses who provide AIDS care, in addition to experiencing stigma themselves, also exhibit negative attitudes and perpetrate stigma and discrimination toward persons living with HIV (PLWHAs). We used a participatory research approach to explore the nature, context, and influence of stigma on the nursing care provided to PLWHAs in four low- and middle-income countries: Jamaica, Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda. Eighty-four registered nurses, enrolled nurses, and midwives participated in interviews and 79 participated in 11 focus groups. Nurses were very aware of the stigma and discrimination that AIDS evoked, and made adjustments to their care to decrease the manifestation of AIDS stigma. Despite the assurance that PLWHAs were treated equally, and that universal precautions were used consistently, we found that in reality, nurses sometimes made decisions about nursing care that were based on the appearance of the patient or knowledge of his or her status.

Perception and valuations of community-based education and service by alumni at Makerere University College of Health Sciences

BackgroundTraining of health professionals can be deliberately structured to enhance rural recruitment by exposing the trainees to the realities of rural life and practice through Community-Based Education and Service (COBE) programs. Few studies have surveyed the alumni of these programs to establish their post-university views and whether the positive impact of COBE programs endures into the post-university life. This study surveyed the alumni of COBE at Makerere to obtain their perceptions of the management and administration of COBE and whether COBE had helped develop their confidence as health workers, competence in primary health care and willingness and ability to work in rural communities.Objectives• To assess the efficiency of the management and administration of COBES.• To obtain the views of the impact of COBES on its alumni.MethodsA mixed qualitative and quantitative study was conducted using focus group discussions (FGD) and a telephone administered questionnaire. From a total of 300 COBES alumni 150 were contacted. Twenty four Alumni (13 females and 11 males) were purposefully selected by discipline, gender and place of work, and invited for the focus group discussion. The discussions were transcribed and analyzed using a manifest content analysis table. The thematic issues from the FGDs were used to develop a structured questionnaire which was administered by telephone by the authors. The data were entered into Microsoft excel template and exported to Stata for analysis. The findings of the telephone survey were used to cross-match the views expressed during the focus group discussions.ResultsThe alumni almost unanimously agree that the initial three years of COBES were very successful in terms of administration and coordination. COBES was credited for contributing to development of confidence as health workers, team work, communication skills, competence in primary health care and willingness to work in rural areas. The COBES alumni also identified various challenges associated with administration and coordination of COBES at Makerere.ConclusionsThis study has established that the positive impact of COBES endures with the alumni of the program. Health planners should take advantage of the impact of COBES and provide it with more support.

HIV and Nurses: A Focus Group on Task Shifting in Uganda

&NA; The HIV prevalence rate is 7.4% in Uganda, where the HIV‐related Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and United Nations millennial development goals have not been met. This is partially due to a critical shortage of nurses and other health care providers. Task shifting is a World Health Organization strategy to address the shortage of human resources for health by shifting work from one cadre of health care worker to another, often less‐trained, cadre. We conducted three focus groups with nurses in Uganda to better understand perceptions of their preparation for and implementation of task shifting. The focus group included nurses from diverse work settings. Data analysis revealed that nurses were proud of the work they were doing but were challenged by the lack of consistent and appropriate support. We found a need for additional policies, regulations, and consistent preparation for nurses who work in environments with task shifting.

Undergraduate students’ contributions to health service delivery through community-based education: A qualitative study by the MESAU Consortium in Uganda

BackgroundIt has been realised that there is need to have medical training closer to communities where the majority of the population lives in order to orient the trainees’ attitudes towards future practice in such communities. Although community based education (CBE) has increasingly been integrated into health professions curricula since the 1990s, the contribution students make to service delivery during CBE remains largely undocumented. In this study, we examined undergraduate health professions students’ contribution to primary health care during their CBE placements.MethodsThis was a qualitative study involving the Medical Education for Equitable Services to All Ugandans consortium (MESAU). Overall, we conducted 36 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs): one each with youth, men and women at each of 12 CBE sites. Additionally, we interviewed 64 community key-informants. All data were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed using qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti Ver7.ResultsTwo themes emerged: students’ contribution at health facility level and students’ contribution at community level. Under theme one, we established that students were not only learning; they also contributed to delivery of health services at the facilities. Their contribution was highly appreciated especially by community members. Students were described as caring and compassionate, available on time and anytime, and as participating in patient care. They were willing to share their knowledge and skills, and stimulated discussion on work ethics. Under the second theme, students were reported to have participated in water, sanitation, and hygiene education in the community. Students contributed to maintenance of safe water sources, educated communities on drinking safe water and on good sanitation practices (hand washing and proper waste disposal). Hygiene promotion was done at household level (food hygiene, hand washing, cleanliness) and to the public. Public health education was extended to institutions. School pupils were sensitised on various health-related issues including sexuality and sexual health.ConclusionHealth professions students at the MESAU institutions contribute meaningfully to primary health care delivery. We recommend CBE to all health training programs in sub-Saharan Africa.

Nursing Partnership Activities, Components, and Outcomes: Health Volunteers Overseas in Uganda 2001–2016

Nurses increasingly form global health partnerships through academic and voluntary organizations that are designed to improve health outcomes. Many such partnerships are funded for specific time periods and have short- or long-term goals to achieve during the partnership. Other partnerships are sustained for longer periods of time through the efforts of partners committed to their joint work. The case example of the Health Volunteers Overseas Nursing Education partnership in Kampala, Uganda, demonstrates key components of partnerships that promote sustainability of programs. This case example is analyzed using literature that reports partnership models to identify those factors that have led to sustainability. Additionally, both objective and subjective program outcomes are reported. Recommendations for further evaluation are included.

Experience of perceived barriers and enablers of safe uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact during the first hour after birth in Uganda

OBJECTIVE To identify barriers and enablers to conducting safe uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact (SSC) in the first hour after birth in a low-resource setting and to evaluate how health care professionals coped with the identified barriers after completion of an intervention package. DESIGN AND SETTING A qualitative method using focus-group and individual interviews with health professionals at a governmental hospital in Uganda. PARTICIPANTS 81 health professionals. INTERVENTIONS A 6-step intervention package including, amongst other things, showing a DVD on safe uninterrupted SSC following birth and discussing with the professionals what barriers and possibilities there were to changing practice to allow SSC for one hour. MEASUREMENTS AND FINDINGS The thematic analysis of the intervention interviews yielded the following themes: Perceived barriers including medical events, psychosocial issues and standard midwifery practice; Pragmatic barriers including economic constraints in the hospital and community; Anticipated barriers by staff and families; Enabling events including staff involvement. Most of the barriers involving expenses were not solved. When the mother and infant had to move to the postnatal ward within one hour after birth, there were difficulties in keeping SSC during the transportation, but this obstacle was partly solved. A few mothers (i.e. depressed and/or adolescent) were considered to be unwilling to keep the infant skin-to-skin; this difficulty was not solved. Practising SSC led the participants to find advantages such as reduced work load and positive effects on pain during suturing. CONCLUSIONS SSC following birth was shown to be applicable and accepted by the health professionals. The involvement of professionals had clinical implications, such as initiatives to broadcast the message of SSC by radio to the community and introduce SSC to women having a Caesarean section.