ArticleBMC health services research2023
Using telehealth to support community health workers in Uganda during COVID-19: a mixed-method study.
Article in BMC health services research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Facilitators and barriers affecting the implementation of e-health for chronic respiratory diseases in remote settings: a qualitative evidence synthesis.BMC health services research · 2025Pooled it
- The effectiveness of rural community health workers in improving health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review.Global health action · 2024Pooled it
- Covid-19 hotlines, helplines and call centers: a systematic review of characteristics, challenges and lessons learned.BMC public health · 2024Pooled it
- Assessment of Qatar's Health Care Community Call Center Efficacy in Addressing COVID-19 Pandemic Health Care Challenges: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR formative research · 2024Article
- Kukaa Salama (Staying Safe): a pre-post trial of an interactive informational mobile health intervention for increasing COVID-19 prevention practices with urban refugee youth in Uganda.International health · 2024Article
- The effectiveness of community health worker training, equipping, and deployment in reducing COVID-19 infections and deaths in rural Western Kenya: A comparison of two counties.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Harnessing digital technology for COVID-19 response in Uganda: lessons and implications for future public health emergencies.BMJ global health · 2023Review
- Assessing the performance of local pharmaceutical systems: An analytical approach to improve access to medicine.The journal of medicine accessReview
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAt the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a local consortium in Uganda set up a telehealth approach that aimed to educate 3,500 Community Health Workers (CHW) in rural areas about COVID-19, help them identify, refer and care for potential COVID-19 cases, and support them in continuing their regular community health work. The aim of this study was to assess the functioning of the telehealth approach that was set up to support CHWs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
methodsFor this mixed-method study, we combined analysis of routine consultation data from the call-center, 24 interviews with key-informants and two surveys of 150 CHWs. Data were analyzed using constant comparative method of analysis.
resultsBetween March 2020 and June 2021, a total of 35,553 consultations took place via the call center. While the CHWs made extensive use of the call center, they rarely asked for support for potential Covid-19 cases. According to the CHWs, there were no signs that people in their communities were suffering from severe health problems due to COVID-19. People compared the lack of visible symptoms to diseases such as Ebola and were skeptical about the danger of COVID-19. At the same time, people in rural areas were afraid to report relevant symptoms and get tested for fear of being quarantined and stigmatized. The telehealth approach did prove useful for other purposes, such as supporting CHWs with their regular tasks and coordinating the supply of essential products. The health professionals at the call center supported CHWs in diagnosing, referring and treating patients and adhering to infection prevention and control practices. The CHWs felt more informed and less isolated, saying the support from the call center helped them to provide better care and improved the supply of medicine and other essential health products.
conclusionsThe telehealth approach, launched at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, provided useful support to thousands of CHWs in rural communities in Uganda. The telehealth approach could be quickly set up and scaled up and offers a low cost strategy for providing useful and flexible support to CHWs in rural communities.
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