Browsing by Author "Nkhoma, Kennedy"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    COVID-19 and Palliative Care Capacity, African Region
    (Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 2021) Afolabi, Oladayo A.; Abboah-Offei, Mary; Namisango, Eve; Chukwusa, Emeka; Oluyase, Adejoke O.; Luyirika, Emmanuel B.K.; Harding, Richard; Nkhoma, Kennedy
    Palliative care is included within the universal health coverage goal of the sustainable development goals as an essential health service and is considered a human right.1 The seventy-third World Health Assembly recommended palliative care as a core component within the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) response plans of Member States. However, the neglect of palliative care is a well established problem worldwide. Of the roughly 60 million people experiencing serious health-related suffering who would benefit from palliative care in a given year, over 80% live in developing countries where such care is scarce or non-existent.2 Mortality projections from the World Health Organization show an anticipated rapid increase in serious health-related suffering at the end of life in the coming decades.3 Delivering timely, appropriate and effective palliative care is a pressing challenge highlighted by the morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Do the Clinical Management Guidelines for Covid-19 in African Countries Reflect the African Quality Palliative Care Standards? A Review of Current Guideline
    (Journal of pain and symptom management, 2021) Afolabi, Oladayo A.; Abboah-Offei, Mary; Namisango, Eve; Luyirika, Emmanuel B.K.; Nkhoma, Kennedy
    Palliative care should be a component of COVID-19 management to relieve suffering, improve patient outcomes and save cost. We aimed to identify and critically appraise the palliative care recommendations within COVID-19 case management guidelines in African countries.The study employed systematic guideline review design. All guidelines from any country in Africa, of any language, published between December 2019 and June 2020 were retrieved through online search and email to in-country key contacts. We conducted a content analysis of the palliative care recommendations within the guidelines and appraised the recommendations using African Palliative Care Association standards for providing quality palliative care.We retrieved documents from 29 of 54 African countries. Fifteen documents from 15 countries were included in the final analysis, of which eight countries have identifiable PC recommendations in their COVID-19 management guidelines. Of these eight, only one country (South Sudan) provided comprehensive palliative care recommendations covering the domains of physical, psychological, social and spiritual wellbeing, two (Namibia and Uganda) addressed only physical and psychological wellbeing while the remaining five countries addressed only physical symptom management.Comprehensive palliative care which addresses physical, psychological, social and spiritual concerns must be prioritized within case management guidelines in African countries.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The Role, Impact, and Support of Informal Caregivers in the Delivery of Palliative Care for Patients with Advanced Cancer: A Multi-Country Qualitative Study
    (Palliative medicine, 2021) Adejoh, Samuel Ojima; Boele, Florien; Akeju, David; Dandadzi, Adlight; Nabirye, Elizabeth; Namisango, Eve; Namukwaya, Elizabeth; Ebenso, Bassey; Nkhoma, Kennedy; Allsop, Matthew J.
    Cancer is increasing in its prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa. Informal caregivers are key to supporting engagement and interaction with palliative care services, but limited literature on their role impedes development of supportive interventions.We aimed to understand the role, impact, and support of informal caregivers of patients with advanced cancer when interacting with palliative care services in Nigeria, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.Secondary analysis of qualitative interview transcripts. The dataset was assessed for fit and relevance and framework approach was used.Interview transcripts of informal caregivers included participants aged over 18 years of age recruited from palliative care services across participating countries.A total of 48 transcripts were analyzed. Mean age was 37 (range 19–75) with equal numbers of men and women. Five themes emerged from the data: (1) caregivers are coordinators of emotional, practical, and health service matters; (2) caregiving comes at a personal social and financial cost; (3) practical and emotional support received and required; (4) experience of interacting and liaising with palliative care services; and (5) barriers and recommendations relating to the involvement of palliative care.The role of informal caregivers is multi-faceted, with participants reporting taking care of the majority of medical, physical, financial, and emotional needs of the care recipient, often in the face of sacrifices relating to employment, finances, and their own health and social life. Efforts to develop comprehensive cancer control plans in sub-Saharan Africa must take account of the increasing evidence of informal caregiver needs.