High quality care following orthopaedic injury in Zambia: A qualitative, patient-centred study

Background
Injuries are a significant cause of mortality and morbidity, particular in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). While there is a focus on increasing injury care capacity, less attention is given to assessing, improving, and understanding the quality of care provided, especially from a patient perspective. This study therefore aims to understand what patients from a Zambian orthopaedic ward believe good quality care to be, to identify its key components, and contribute to better understanding what patients believe local healthcare priorities could be.

Methods
Patients admitted to the orthopaedic ward of a Zambian tertiary care hospital were invited to take part in-depth face-to-face interviews. Interviews were continued until thematic saturation was achieved. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Analysis was done using an inductive grounded theory approach.

Results
Of 13 patients approached, 12 consented to take part. Analysis of the themes from the transcripts led to the emergence of four core categories of quality care which are important to the patient: i) restoring the patient to normality (category: ‘restoring normality’), ii) establishing trust between patients and providers (‘trusting the provider’), iii) respecting the patient and allowing them to maintain autonomy (‘autonomy and respect’) iv) finding ways for patients to enjoy their time in the hospital (‘enjoying life’). From these results, a patient perspective theory of quality care emerged. This theory posits the idea that high-quality care in this context needs to fulfil these four core categories. Additionally, these core categories were ranked on significance and priority.

Conclusion
The hierarchy of core categories could help to identify areas to improve care quality in this setting. Not only has this study helped to determine local priorities for achieving high-quality care but can encourage others to test injured patient perceptions of care quality in comparable settings.

Health care seeking in modern urban LMIC settings: evidence from Lusaka, Zambia

Background
In an effort to improve population health, many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have expanded access to public primary care facilities and removed user fees for services in these facilities. However, a growing literature suggests that many patients bypass nearby primary care facilities to seek care at more distant or higher-level facilities. Patients in urban areas, a growing segment of the population in LMICs, generally have more options for where to seek care than patients in rural areas. However, evidence on care-seeking trajectories and bypassing patterns in urban areas remains relatively scarce.

Methods
We obtained a complete list of public health facilities and interviewed randomly selected informal sector households across 31 urban areas in Lusaka District, Zambia. All households and facilities listed were geocoded, and care-seeking trajectories mapped across the entire urban area. We analyzed three types of bypassing: i) not using health centers or health posts for primary care; ii) seeking care outside of the residential neighborhood; iii) directly seeking care at teaching hospitals.

Results
A total of 620 households were interviewed, linked to 88 health facilities. Among 571 adults who had recently sought non-emergency care, 65% sought care at a hospital. Among 141 children who recently sought care for diarrhea, cough, fever, or fast breathing, 34% sought care at a hospital. 71% of adults bypassed primary care facilities, 26% bypassed health centers and hospitals close to them for more distant facilities, and 8% directly sought care at a teaching hospital. Bypassing was also observed for 59% of children, who were more likely to seek care outside of the formal care sector, with 21% of children treated at drug shops or pharmacies.

Conclusions
The results presented here strongly highlight the complexity of urban health systems. Most adult patients in Lusaka do not use public primary health facilities for non-emergency care, and heavily rely on pharmacies and drug shops for treatment of children. Major efforts will likely be needed if the government wants to instate health centers as the principal primary care access point in this setting.

Supervision as a tool for building surgical capacity of district hospitals: the case of Zambia

Introduction
Many countries in sub-Saharan Africa have adopted task shifting of surgical responsibilities to non-physician clinicians (NPCs) as a solution to address workforce shortages. There is resistance to delegating surgical procedures to NPCs due to concerns about their surgical skills and lack of supervision systems to ensure safety and quality of care provided. This study aimed to explore the effects of a new supervision model implemented in Zambia to improve the delivery of health services by surgical NPCs working at district hospitals.
Methods
Twenty-eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with NPCs and medical doctors at nine district hospitals and with the surgical specialists who provided in-person and remote supervision over an average period of 15 months. Data were analysed using ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ thematic coding.
Results
Interviewees reported an improvement in the surgical skills and confidence of NPCs, as well as better teamwork. At the facility level, supervision led to an increase in the volume and range of surgical procedures done and helped to reduce unnecessary surgical referrals. The supervision also improved communication links by facilitating the establishment of a remote consultation network, which enabled specialists to provide real-time support to district NPCs in how to undertake particular surgical procedures and expert guidance on referral decisions. Despite these benefits, shortages of operating theatre support staff, lack of equipment and unreliable power supply impeded maximum utilisation of supervision.
Conclusion
This supervision model demonstrated the additional role that specialist surgeons can play, bringing their expertise to rural populations, where such surgical competence would otherwise be unobtainable. Further research is needed to establish the cost-effectiveness of the supervision model; the opportunity costs from surgical specialists being away from referral hospitals, providing supervision in districts; and the steps needed for regular district surgical supervision to become part of sustainable national programmes.