Use of laboratory test results in patient management by clinicians in Malawi
Afr. j. lab. med. (Online)
; 4(1): 1-8, 2015. tab
Artigo
em Inglês
| AIM
| ID: biblio-1257300
Biblioteca responsável:
CG1.1
ABSTRACT
Background:
Malawi has a high burden of infectious disease. The expansion of programmes targeting these diseases requires a strong laboratory infrastructure to support both diagnosis and treatment.Objectives:
To assess the use of laboratory test results in patient management and to determine the requirements for improving laboratory services.Methods:
A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2012 to survey practising clinicians.Two hospitals were purposively selected for observations of clinicians ordering laboratory tests. Twelve management-level key informants were interviewed. Descriptive statistics were conducted.Results:
A total of 242 clinicians were identified and 216 (89%) were interviewed. Of these; 189 (87%) reported doubting laboratory test results at some point. Clinicians most often doubted the quality of haematology (67%); followed by malaria (53%) and CD4 (22%) test results. A total of 151 (70%) clinicians reported using laboratory tests results in patient management. Use of laboratory test results at all times in patient management varied by the type of health facility (P 0.001). Ninety-one percent of clinicians reported that laboratories required infrastructure improvement. During 97 observations of clinicians' use of laboratory test results; 80 tests were ordered; and 73 (91%) of these were used in patient management. Key informants reported that the quality of laboratory services was good and useful; but that services were often unavailable.Conclusion:
Gaps in the public laboratory system were evident. Key recommendations to enhance the use of laboratory test results in patient management were to strengthen the supply chain; reduce turn-around times; improve the test menu and improve the laboratory infrastructure
Texto completo:
DisponíveL
Índice:
AIM (África)
Assunto principal:
Administração dos Cuidados ao Paciente
/
Doenças Transmissíveis
/
Laboratórios
/
Malaui
Tipo de estudo:
Guia de Prática Clínica
/
Estudo observacional
País/Região como assunto:
África
Idioma:
Inglês
Revista:
Afr. j. lab. med. (Online)
Ano de publicação:
2015
Tipo de documento:
Artigo
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