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      School-based diagnosis and treatment of malaria by teachers using rapid diagnostic tests and artemisinin-based combination therapy: experiences and perceptions of users and implementers of the Learner Treatment Kit, southern Malawi

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          Abstract

          Background

          Training teachers to diagnose uncomplicated malaria using malaria rapid diagnostic tests and treat with artemisinin-based combination therapy has the potential to improve the access of primary school children (6–14 years) to prompt and efficient treatment for malaria, but little is known about the acceptability of such an intervention. This qualitative study explored experiences and perceptions of users and implementers of a programme of school-based malaria case management via a first-aid kit—the Learner Treatment Kit (LTK)—implemented as part of a cluster-randomized controlled trial in Zomba district, Malawi.

          Methods

          From 29 primary schools where teachers were trained to test and treat school children for malaria using the LTK, six schools were purposively selected on the basis of relative intervention usage (low, medium or high); school size and geographical location. In total eight focus group discussions were held with school children, parents and guardians, and teachers; and 20 in-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders at the school, district and national levels. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using a thematic analysis approach.

          Results

          The LTK was widely perceived by respondents to be a worthwhile intervention, with the opinion that trained teachers were trusted providers of malaria testing and treatment to school children. Benefits of the programme included a perception of improved access to malaria treatment for school children; decreased school absenteeism; and that the programme supported broader national health and education policies. Potential barriers to successful implementation expressed included increased teacher workloads, a feeling of inadequate supervision from health workers, lack of incentives and concerns for the sustainability of the programme regarding the supply of drugs and commodities.

          Conclusion

          Training teachers to test for and treat uncomplicated malaria in schools was well received by both users and implementers alike, and was perceived by the majority of stakeholders to be a valuable programme. Factors raised as critical to the success of such a programme included ensuring an effective supervisory system, a reliable supply chain, and the training of greater numbers of teachers per school to manage high consultation numbers, especially during the peak malaria transmission season.

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          Most cited references19

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          School-Age Children Are a Reservoir of Malaria Infection in Malawi

          Malaria surveillance and interventions in endemic countries often target young children at highest risk of malaria morbidity and mortality. We aimed to determine whether school-age children and adults not captured in surveillance serve as a reservoir for malaria infection and may contribute to malaria transmission. Cross-sectional surveys were conducted in one rainy and one dry season in southern Malawi. Demographic and health information was collected for all household members. Blood samples were obtained for microscopic and PCR identification of Plasmodium falciparum. Among 5796 individuals aged greater than six months, PCR prevalence of malaria infection was 5%, 10%, and 20% in dry, and 9%, 15%, and 32% in rainy seasons in Blantyre, Thyolo, and Chikhwawa, respectively. Over 88% of those infected were asymptomatic. Participants aged 6–15 years were at higher risk of infection (OR=4.8; 95%CI, 4.0–5.8) and asymptomatic infection (OR=4.2; 95%CI, 2.7–6.6) than younger children in all settings. School-age children used bednets less frequently than other age groups. Compared to young children, school-age children were brought less often for treatment and more often to unreliable treatment sources. Conclusion: School-age children represent an underappreciated reservoir of malaria infection and have less exposure to antimalarial interventions. Malaria control and elimination strategies may need to expand to include this age group.
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            The effect of payment and incentives on motivation and focus of community health workers: five case studies from low- and middle-income countries

            Introduction Community health workers (CHWs) have been proposed as a means for bridging gaps in healthcare delivery in rural communities. Recent CHW programmes have been shown to improve child and neonatal health outcomes, and it is increasingly being suggested that paid CHWs become an integral part of health systems. Remuneration of CHWs can potentially effect their motivation and focus. Broadly, programmes follow a social, monetary or mixed market approach to remuneration. Conscious understanding of the differences, and of what each has to offer, is important in selecting the most appropriate approach according to the context. Case descriptions The objective of this review is to identify and examine different remuneration models of CHWs that have been utilized in large-scale sustained programmes to gain insight into the effect that remuneration has on the motivation and focus of CHWs. A MEDLINE search using Ovid SP was undertaken and data collected from secondary sources about CHW programmes in Iran, Ethiopia, India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Five main approaches were identified: part-time volunteer CHWs without regular financial incentives, volunteers that sell health-related merchandise, volunteers with financial incentives, paid full-time CHWs and a mixed model of paid and volunteer CHWs. Discussion and evaluation Both volunteer and remunerated CHWs are potentially effective and can bring something to the health arena that the other may not. For example, well-trained, supervised volunteers and full-time CHWs who receive regular payment, or a combination of both, are more likely to engage the community in grass-roots health-related empowerment. Programmes that utilize minimal economic incentives to part-time CHWs tend to limit their focus, with financially incentivized activities becoming central. They can, however, improve outcomes in well-circumscribed areas. In order to maintain benefits from different approaches, there is a need to distinguish between CHWs that are trained and remunerated to be a part of an existing health system and those who, with little training, take on roles and are motivated by a range of contextual factors. Governments and planners can benefit from understanding the programme that can best be supported in their communities, thereby maximizing motivation and effectiveness.
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              Primary health care supervision in developing countries.

              To (a) summarise opinion about what supervision of primary health care is by those advocating it; (b) compare these features with reports describing supervision in practice; and (c) to appraise the evidence of the effects of sector performance. Systematic review. Reports were classified into three groups and summarised using appropriate methods: policy and opinion papers (narrative summary), descriptive studies (systematically summarised) and experimental or quasi-experimental studies (design and outcomes systematically summarised). Data presented as narrative summaries and tables. 74 reports were included. In eight policy and opinion papers, supervision was conceptualised as the link between the district and the peripheral health staff; it is important in performance and staff motivation; it often includes problem solving, reviewing records, and observing clinical practice; and is usually undertaken by visiting the supervisees place of work. In 54 descriptive studies, the setting was the primary health care (PHC) or specific services and programmes. Supervisor-supervisee dyads were generally district personnel supervising health facilities or lay health workers. Supervision mostly meant visiting supervisees, but also included meetings in the centre; it appeared to focus on administration and checking, sometimes with checklists. Problem solving, feedback and clinical supervision, training and consultation with the community were less commonly described in the descriptive studies. Supervision appears expensive from studies that have reported costs. In 12 quasi-experimental trials, supervision interventions generally showed small positive effects in some of the outcomes assessed. However, trial quality was mixed, and outcomes varied greatly between studies. Supervision is widely recommended, but is a complex intervention and implemented in different ways. There is some evidence of benefit on health care performance, but the studies are generally limited in the rigor and follow up is limited. Further research delineating what supervision consists of and evaluating it in the context of unbiased comparisons would guide the implementation of effective supervision as part of the management of PHC.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                tchunda80@gmail.com
                stefan.witek-mcmanus@lshtm.ac.uk
                austinmtali@gmail.com
                Gokello@kemri-wellcome.org
                Paul.Nguluwe@savethechildren.org
                hard.chatsika@savethechildren.org
                n.roschnik@savethechildren.org.uk
                katherine.halliday@lshtm.ac.uk
                simon.brooker@gatesfoundation.org
                dmathang@mac.medcol.mw
                Journal
                Malar J
                Malar. J
                Malaria Journal
                BioMed Central (London )
                1475-2875
                7 August 2017
                7 August 2017
                2017
                : 16
                : 318
                Affiliations
                [1 ]ISNI 0000 0001 2113 2211, GRID grid.10595.38, Department of Community Health, , College of Medicine, ; Blantyre, Malawi
                [2 ]ISNI 0000 0004 0425 469X, GRID grid.8991.9, , London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, ; London, UK
                [3 ]Save the Children International, Zomba, Malawi
                [4 ]ISNI 0000 0001 0155 5938, GRID grid.33058.3d, , KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme, ; Kilifi, Kenya
                [5 ]GRID grid.475678.f, , Save the Children, USA, ; Westport, Connecticut USA
                [6 ]ISNI 0000 0001 2113 2211, GRID grid.10595.38, Malaria Alert Centre, , College of Medicine, ; Blantyre, Malawi
                Article
                1964
                10.1186/s12936-017-1964-z
                5547577
                28784129
                e2b53bf7-9204-4946-a51a-5af4e158991b
                © The Author(s) 2017

                Open AccessThis article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ( http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.

                History
                : 14 November 2016
                : 31 July 2017
                Funding
                Funded by: Save the Children Sponsorship
                Funded by: International Initiative for Impact Evaluation
                Categories
                Research
                Custom metadata
                © The Author(s) 2017

                Infectious disease & Microbiology
                Infectious disease & Microbiology

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