ArticleBMC health services research2026
On-site safety practices and knowledge in deathcare work: a phenomenological account of the lived-experiences of deathcare workers in Ghana.
Article in BMC health services research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWhile deathcare services in developed countries are provided by well-trained, adequately resourced professionals, the industry in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is characterized by minimal training, apprenticeship, and severe resource constraints. Consequently, workers in SSA often lack knowledge of industry policies, fail to adhere to proper personal protective equipment (PPE) protocols, and maintain poor personal and hand hygiene. Therefore, this study explored the knowledge, on-site safety practices, and experiences of deathcare workers in selected facilities within the Central and Western North regions of Ghana.
methodsUsing a 10-item interview guide and observation checklists, we collected data from 35 participants selected using purposive sampling method. We employed a realistic phenomenological design and observational analysis to interpret the findings.
resultsDeathcare workers have limited knowledge of industry regulations designed to protect their health and safety. On-site practices are inconsistent with the Ministry of Health (MoH), Ghana, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) and Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) guidelines. Specifically, workers fail to use PPE correctly, and their hand and personal hygiene practices do not conform to MoH standard operating procedures. These workers engaged in inappropriate handling of dead bodies risking exposure to infection.
conclusionsThese deathcare workers have very limited knowledge required to provide safe deathcare services and were unable to advocate for their rights under existing policy guidelines. The MoH must develop a policy to standardize the recruitment of deathcare workers, while training current workers for protection.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.