NDLI: Geographical Access to Point-of-care diagnostic tests for diabetes, anaemia, Hepatitis B, and human immunodeficiency virus in the Bono Region, Ghana

Content Provider	Springer Nature : BioMed Central
Author	Ansu-Mensah, Monica Ginindza, Themba G. Amponsah, Samuel Kofi Shimbre, Mulugeta Shegaze Bawontuo, Vitalis Kuupiel, Desmond
Abstract	Background Diabetes mellitus, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and anaemia are major global public health issues according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Access to diagnostic testing is essential for their prompt detection and treatment. The WHO has recommended a list of essential in-vitro diagnostics for testing at all levels of care. However, a survey preceding this study showed limited availability of point-of-care (POC) tests for these conditions in the Bono Region (BR) of Ghana. This study assessed the geographical access to diabetes, anaemia, hepatitis B, and HIV POC testing in the BR, Ghana for targeted improvement. Methods We gathered the geolocated data of 137 facilities (CHPS, Clinics, healthcare centres, and hospitals) in the BR that were providing glucose, haemoglobin (Hb), Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (Hep B), and HIV POC testing services in July 2022. We used ArcGIS 10.1 to quantify the geographical access (distance and travel time) to the nearest available testing site for each test and show places with inadequate access, for targeted improvement. The journey time was calculated assuming a speed of 20 kilometres (km)/h. ArcMap 10.1 was employed to run spatial autocorrelation (Moran Index (MI)) to determine the spatial distribution of the facilities providing the tests investigated. Results Of the 137 facilities, the glucose test was available in 67 (49%), the Hb test in 55 (40%), the Hep B test in 44 (32%), and the HIV test in 73 (53%). The mean (standard deviation (SD)) for obtaining glucose tests in the region was 7.4 ± 3.7 km, Hb was 8.1 ± 4.06 km, Hep B was 8.2 ± 4.1 km, and HIV test was 7.3 ± 3.7 km by a motorised cycle. The mean SD travel time in the region to obtain the glucose test was 94.4 ± 47.2 min compared to 95.7 ± 47.8 min for Hb, 95.9 ± 47.93 min for Hep B, and 92.7 ± 46.3 min for the HIV test. Three districts (Berekum East, Dormaa East, and Jaman North) recorded shorter distances (< 10 km) and a shorter travel time to the glucose, Hb, Hep B, and HIV tests compared to the Banda district, which recorded more than 10 km for all tests investigated. Positive IM values were recorded for all the POC tests, suggesting that the health facilities providing the glucose, Hb, Hep B, and HIV tests in the BR were spatially distributed at random. Conclusions The findings revealed moderate access to all the tests in districts across the region. However, geographical access to glucose, Hb, Hep B, and HIV POC testing was poor (distance ≥ 10 km and travel time of ≥ 93 min), in the Banda district. This study showed the need to prioritise the Banda district for targeted improvement for all the tests. A further study is recommended to identify potential solutions to addressing the POC testing implementation in the BR, as demonstrated by this study.
Related Links	https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/counter/pdf/10.1186/s12913-024-11830-2.pdf
Ending Page	11
Page Count	11
Starting Page	1
File Format	HTM / HTML
ISSN	14726963
DOI	10.1186/s12913-024-11830-2
Journal	BMC Health Services Research
Issue Number	1
Volume Number	24
Language	English
Publisher	BioMed Central
Publisher Date	2024-10-29
Access Restriction	Open
Subject Keyword	Public Health Health Administration Health Informatics Nursing Research POC tests Geographical access CHPS Referral facilities
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Health Policy

Sl.	Authority	Responsibilities	Communication Details
1	Ministry of Education (GoI), Department of Higher Education	Sanctioning Authority	https://www.education.gov.in/ict-initiatives
2	Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	Host Institute of the Project: The host institute of the project is responsible for providing infrastructure support and hosting the project	https://www.iitkgp.ac.in
3	National Digital Library of India Office, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	The administrative and infrastructural headquarters of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in
4	Project PI / Joint PI	Principal Investigator and Joint Principal Investigators of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in Prof. Saswat Chakrabarti will be added soon
5	Website/Portal (Helpdesk)	Queries regarding NDLI and its services	support@ndl.gov.in
6	Contents and Copyright Issues	Queries related to content curation and copyright issues	content@ndl.gov.in
7	National Digital Library of India Club (NDLI Club)	Queries related to NDLI Club formation, support, user awareness program, seminar/symposium, collaboration, social media, promotion, and outreach	clubsupport@ndl.gov.in
8	Digital Preservation Centre (DPC)	Assistance with digitizing and archiving copyright-free printed books	dpc@ndl.gov.in
9	IDR Setup or Support	Queries related to establishment and support of Institutional Digital Repository (IDR) and IDR workshops	idr@ndl.gov.in

Sustainable solutions to barriers of point-of-care diagnostic testing services in health facilities without laboratories in the Bono Region, Ghana: a qualitative study

Improving the effectiveness of point of care tests for malaria and anaemia: a qualitative study across three Ghanaian antenatal clinics

Economic burden and coping mechanisms by tuberculosis treatment supporters: a mixed method approach from Bono Region, Ghana

Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) concept and access to healthcare delivery in Sefwi Wiawso Municipal, Ghana

Challenges of medical commodity availability in public and private health care facilities in the Upper East Region of Ghana: a patient-centered perspective

Rollout of rapid point of care tests for antenatal syphilis screening in Ghana: healthcare provider perspectives and experiences

Evaluating maternal death surveillance and response system in Sunyani Municipality of Bono region in Ghana from 2017-2021

Assessing the functionality of an emergency obstetric referral system and continuum of care among public healthcare facilities in a low resource setting: an application of process mapping approach

Cost of delivering health care services at primary health facilities in Ghana

Geographical Access to Point-of-care diagnostic tests for diabetes, anaemia, Hepatitis B, and human immunodeficiency virus in the Bono Region, Ghana

Similar Documents

Sustainable solutions to barriers of point-of-care diagnostic testing services in health facilities without laboratories in the Bono Region, Ghana: a qualitative study

Improving the effectiveness of point of care tests for malaria and anaemia: a qualitative study across three Ghanaian antenatal clinics

Economic burden and coping mechanisms by tuberculosis treatment supporters: a mixed method approach from Bono Region, Ghana

Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) concept and access to healthcare delivery in Sefwi Wiawso Municipal, Ghana

Challenges of medical commodity availability in public and private health care facilities in the Upper East Region of Ghana: a patient-centered perspective

Rollout of rapid point of care tests for antenatal syphilis screening in Ghana: healthcare provider perspectives and experiences

Evaluating maternal death surveillance and response system in Sunyani Municipality of Bono region in Ghana from 2017-2021

Assessing the functionality of an emergency obstetric referral system and continuum of care among public healthcare facilities in a low resource setting: an application of process mapping approach

Cost of delivering health care services at primary health facilities in Ghana

Geographical Access to Point-of-care diagnostic tests for diabetes, anaemia, Hepatitis B, and human immunodeficiency virus in the Bono Region, Ghana