Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38726546›Full record

ArticleJournal of global health2024

Functional availability of medical oxygen for the management of hypoxaemia in Cameroon: A nationwide facility-based cross-sectional survey.

Yauba Saidu, Agbor Valirie Ndip, Ousmane Diaby, Bonaventure Hollong, Zachary Katz, Audrey Battu, Sangwe Clovis Nchinjoh, Adamou Dodo Balkissou, Owens Wiwa

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of global health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Yauba SaiduClinton Health Access Initiative Inc., Yaounde, Cameroon.
Agbor Valirie NdipClinical Trial Service Unit and Epidemiological Studies Unit (CTSU), Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, England, UK.
Ousmane DiabyMinistry of Public Health, Yaounde, Cameroon.
Bonaventure HollongMinistry of Public Health, Yaounde, Cameroon.
Zachary KatzGlobal Essential Medicines, Clinton Health Access Initiative Inc., Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Audrey BattuGlobal Essential Medicines, Clinton Health Access Initiative Inc., Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Sangwe Clovis NchinjohClinton Health Access Initiative Inc., Yaounde, Cameroon.
Adamou Dodo BalkissouHôpital Régional De Garoua, BP 121 Garoua, Cameroon.
Owens WiwaClinton Health Access Initiative Inc., Yaounde, Cameroon.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Medical oxygen is essential for managing hypoxaemia, which has a multifactorial origin, including acute and chronic lung diseases such as pneumonia, asthma, and severe malaria. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) revealed substantial gaps in the availability and accessibility of safe medical oxygen, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to assess the availability and sources, as well as the barriers to the availability of functional medical oxygen in hospitals in Cameroon. Methods: This was a nationwide cross-sectional descriptive study conducted from 26 March to 1 June 2021. Using a convenient sampling technique, we sampled accredited public and private COVID-19 treatment centres in all ten regions in Cameroon. Representatives from the selected hospitals were provided with a pre-designed questionnaire assessing the availability, type, and state of medical oxygen in their facilities. All analyses were performed using R. Results: In total, 114 hospitals were included in this study, with functional medical oxygen available in 65% (74/114) of the hospitals. About 85% (23/27) of the reference hospitals and only 59% (51/87) of the district hospitals had available functional medical oxygen. Compared to district hospitals, reference hospitals were more likely to have central oxygen units (reference vs. district: 10 vs. 0%), oxygen cylinders (74 vs. 42%), and oxygen concentrators (79 vs. 51%). The most common barriers to the availability of medical oxygen were inadequate oxygen supply to meet needs (district vs. reference hospitals: 55 vs. 30%), long delays in oxygen bottle refills (51 vs. 49%), and long distances from oxygen suppliers (57 vs. 49%). Conclusions: The availability of medical oxygen in hospitals in Cameroon is suboptimal and more limited in districts compared to reference hospitals. The cost of medical oxygen, delays related to refills and supplies, and long distances from medical sources were the most common barriers to availability in Cameroon.

Indexed as

COVID-19Health Services AccessibilityHypoxiaOxygen Inhalation TherapyCameroonCross-Sectional StudiesHumansOxygenSurveys and QuestionnairesOxygen

Identifiers

PMID38726546
PMCPMC11082622

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.