The PNG Midwifery Leadership Buddy Program: An evaluation.

PROBLEM: Papua New Guinea (PNG) has a high rate of preventable maternal and neonatal deaths. BACKGROUND: Developing midwifery leadership is vital to addressing the current deficits in health outcomes for women and their babies. The PNG Midwifery Leadership Buddy Program responds to this need through leadership training and partnering of midwives across PNG and Australia. Participants in the program undertake a workshop in Port Moresby and commit to a 12-month peer support relationship with a midwife 'buddy'. AIM: To evaluate participants' experiences of the Buddy Program and the impact of the program on leadership skills. METHODS: All 23 midwives who had completed the program were invited to participate in the evaluation. The study used a concurrent mixed methods approach. Qualitative data were collected via interviews and then thematically analysed. Quantitative data were collected via a survey and analysed with descriptive statistics, then findings were triangulated. FINDINGS: Participants reported increased confidence for leadership, action and advocacy. Numerous quality improvement projects were implemented in health services in PNG. Challenges to the success of the program included technological limitations, cultural differences and the COVID-19 pandemic. DISCUSSION: Participants reported the PNG Midwifery Leadership Buddy Program was successful in increasing their leadership skills and collaborative opportunities, as well as strengthening midwifery more broadly. While there were barriers, most participants valued the experience and believed it benefited them professionally and personally CONCLUSION: The Buddy Program provides a practical model for building midwifery leadership capacity that may be transferrable to other contexts.

Concomitant illnesses in pregnancy in Indonesia: A health systems analysis at a District level.

BACKGROUND: In LMICs, including Indonesia, there is a rising burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) with a prevailing burden of infectious diseases, including among pregnant women. The Indonesian health system faces significant challenges to provide effective care for infectious diseases, and even more so, NCDs. This is concerning due to the greater vulnerability of pregnant women to complications caused by concomitant illnesses (NCDs and infectious diseases), and the need for complex, integrated healthcare between maternal care and other health services. METHODS: The objective of this study was to understand supporting factors and challenges of the health system to providing care for concomitant illnesses in pregnancy and how it may be improved. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with sixteen key stakeholders, including health providers and health service managers, involved in maternal healthcare for concomitant illnesses at a District level in Indonesia. The study was conducted in Kutai Kartanegara District of East Kalimantan. Analysis was conducted using framework analysis to identify themes from transcripts. RESULTS: Supporting factors of the health system to provide care for concomitant illness in pregnancy included collaboration between health providers and health services, availability of screening and diagnostic tools, and access to universal healthcare coverage and financial subsidies. Common challenges included knowledge and awareness of concomitant illnesses among health providers, competency to diagnose and/or manage concomitant illnesses, and inappropriate referrals. Suggested improvements identified to address these gaps included increasing education and refresher training for healthcare providers and strengthening referrals between primary and hospital care. CONCLUSIONS: The findings identified gaps in the health system to provide care for concomitant illnesses in pregnancy in Indonesia that need to be strengthened. More evidence-based research is needed to guide the implementation of policy and practice interventions for the health system to deal with a broader range of concomitant illnesses in pregnancy, particularly NCDs.

Intimate-partner violence and its association with symptoms of depression, perceived health, and quality of life in the Himalayan Mountain Villages of Gilgit Baltistan.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: We aimed to estimate the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and associated risk factors in married women in rural villages of Gilgit Baltistan in Pakistan. METHODS: A cross-sectional design to assess the magnitude and factors associated with IPV in a random sample of 789 married women aged 18-49 years. A World Health Organization screening instrument was used to assess the presence of IPV in the previous 12 months. A locally validated instrument was adopted to identify self-reported symptoms of major depression according to the DSM IV. Trained nurses obtained socio-demographic and reproductive history through structured interviews. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to estimate prevalence and identify significant predictors of IPV. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 38.3 years (SD: ±12.8). The prevalence of IPV in women was 22.8% (95% Confidence Interval: 20.0-25.9), 18.5% in pregnant women (95% CI: 11.7-27.9) and significantly associated with depression in 55.1% of IPV cases. Husband education level (college/higher) (Adjusted Odds Ratio: 0.40; 95%CI: 0.22-0.70) and high household income (AOR: 0.44; 95% CI: 0.29-0.68) were protective against IPV. Increase in age (AOR;1.02; 95% CI: 1.01-1.02) and poor relationship with mother-in-law increased the risk of IPV (AOR = 2.85; 95% CI: 1.90-4.28). IPV was positively associated with symptoms of depression (AOR = 1.97; 95% CI:1.39-2.77), poor perceived quality of life (AOR = 3.54; 95% CI: 1.90-6.58) and poor health (AOR = 2.74; 95% CI: 1.92-3.92). CONCLUSION: IPV is substantial public health burden significantly associated with depressive symptoms, poor perceived health and the quality of life.

Indicator-activities to apply primary health care principles in national or large-scale community health worker programs in low-and middle-income countries: a Delphi exercise.

INTRODUCTION: Primary Health Care (PHC) gained considerable momentum in the past four decades and led to improved health outcomes across a wide variety of settings. In low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), national or large-scale Community Health Worker Programs (CHWPs) are considered as vehicles to incorporate PHC principles into healthcare provision and are an essential aspect of the PHC approach to achieve health for all and sustainable development goals. The success of CHWPs is rooted in the application of PHC principles. However, there is evidence that shows patchy implementation of PHC principles across national CHWPs in LMICs. This may reflect the lack of information on what activities would illustrate the application of these principles in CHWPs. This study aimed to identify a set of core/indicator-activities that reflect the application of PHC principles by CHWPs in LMICs. METHODS: A two-round modified Delphi study was undertaken with participants who have extensive experience in planning, implementation and evaluation of CHWPs. Survey design and analysis was guided by the four PHC principles namely Universal Health Coverage, Community Participation, Intersectoral Coordination and Appropriateness. Responses were collected using a secure online survey program (survey monkey). In round one, participants were asked to list 'core activities' that would reflect the application of each PHC principle and its sub-attributes and challenges to apply these principles in CHWPs. In round two, participants were asked to select whether they agree or disagree with each of the activities and challenges. Consensus was set a priori at 70% agreement of participants for each question. RESULTS: Seventeen participants from 15 countries participated in the study. Consensus was reached on 59 activities reflecting the application of PHC principles by CHWPs. Based on participants' responses, a set of 29 indicator-activities for the four PHC principles was developed with examples for each indicator-activity. CONCLUSION: These indicator-activities may provide guidance on how PHC principles can be implemented in CHWPs. They can be used in the development and evaluation of CHWPs, particularly in their application of PHC principles. Future research may focus on testing the utility of indicator-activities on CHWPs in LMICs.

Preparedness and response to COVID-19 in a quaternary intensive care unit in Australia: perspectives and insights from frontline critical care clinicians.

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to explore the perspectives and opinions of intensive care unit (ICU) nurses and doctors at a COVID-19-designated pandemic hospital concerning the preparedness and response to COVID-19 and to consolidate the lessons learnt for crisis/disaster management in the future. DESIGN: A qualitative study using in-depth interviews (IDIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs). Purposeful sampling was conducted to identify participants. A semistructured guide was used to facilitate IDIs with individual participants. Two FGDs were conducted, one with the ICU doctors and another with the ICU nurses. Thematic analysis identified themes and subthemes informing about the level of preparedness, response measures, processes, and factors that were either facilitators or those that triggered challenges. SETTING: ICU in a quaternary referral centre affiliated to a university teaching COVID-19-designated pandemic hospital, in Adelaide, South Australia. PARTICIPANTS: The participants included eight ICU doctors and eight ICU nurses for the IDIs. Another 16 clinicians participated in FGDs. RESULTS: The study identified six themes relevant to preparedness for, and responses to, COVID-19. The themes included: (1) staff competence and planning, (2) information transfer and communication, (3) education and skills for the safe use of personal protective equipment, (4) team dynamics and clinical practice, (5) leadership, and (6) managing end-of-life situations and expectations of caregivers. CONCLUSION: Findings highlight that preparedness and response to the COVID-19 crisis were proportionate to the situation's gravity. More enablers than barriers were identified. However, opportunities for improvement were recognised in the domains of planning, logistics, self-sufficiency with equipment, operational and strategic oversight, communication and managing end-of-life care.

Application of primary healthcare principles in national community health worker programmes in low-income and middle-income countries: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: To identify which primary healthcare (PHC) principles are reflected in the implementation of national community health worker (CHW) programmes and how they may contribute to the outcomes of these programmes in the context of low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). DESIGN: Scoping review. DATA SOURCES: A systematic search was conducted through PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE and Scopus databases. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: The review considered published primary studies on national programmes, projects or initiatives using the services of CHWs in LMICs focused on maternal and child health. We included only English language studies. Excluded were programmes operated by non-government organisations, study protocols, reviews, commentaries, opinion papers, editorials and conference proceedings. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: We reviewed the application of four PHC principles (universal health coverage, community participation, intersectoral coordination and appropriateness) in the CHW programme's objectives, implementation and stated outcomes. Data extraction was undertaken systematically in an excel spreadsheet while the findings were synthesised in a narrative manner. The quality appraisal of the selected studies was not performed in this scoping review. RESULTS: From 1280 papers published between 1983 and 2019, 26 met the inclusion criteria. These 26 papers included 14 CHW programmes from 13 LMICs. Universal health coverage and community participation were the two commonly reported PHC principles, while intersectoral coordination was generally missing. Similarly, the cultural acceptability aspect of the principle of appropriateness was present in all programmes as these programmes select CHWs from within the communities. Other aspects, particularly effectiveness, were not evident. CONCLUSION: The implementation of PHC principles across national CHW programmes in LMICs is patchy. For comprehensiveness and improved health outcomes, programmes need to incorporate all attributes of PHC principles. Future research may focus on how to incorporate more attributes of PHC principles while implementing national CHW programmes in LMICs. Better documentation and publications of CHW programme implementation are also needed.

Characteristics and significance of "green snake" bites in Myanmar, especially by the pit vipers Trimeresurus albolabris and Trimeresurus erythrurus.

Snakebite is an important problem in Myanmar. Regionally, bites by Eastern Russell's vipers, Daboia siamensis (Viperidae, Viperinae), and monocled cobras, Naja kaouthia are considered medically important, but those categorised as "green snake" bites are not. However, these may include bites by green pit vipers, Trimeresurus spp. (Viperidae, Crotalinae) for which no antivenom is available in Myanmar. Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, these snakes are reported to cause local and systemic envenoming. As part of the Myanmar Snakebite Project, prospective case data were collected over 3 years from five hospitals in the Mandalay region. These included 3803 snakebite cases reported from Mandalay region. Of these, 355 were listed as bites by a witnessed green-coloured snake. In 22 cases, the snakes responsible were retained and preserved, then expertly identified; 21 were medically important white-lipped pit vipers (Trimeresurus albolabris), and one as an Asian vine snake, Ahaetulla prasina (Colubridae, Ahaetuliinae) which is not of medical importance. Among confirmed Trimeresurus albolabris bites, 15/21 developed swelling of the bitten limb, and 3/21 coagulopathy, defined as a positive 20-min whole blood clotting test (20WBCT). None developed necrosis, blistering, thrombocytopenia or acute kidney injury (AKI). Of the remaining 333 patients bitten by green snakes that were not specifically identified, 241 (72%) developed swelling of the bitten limb, and 62 (19%) coagulopathy. AKI occurred in 21/333 patients, but only one required dialysis. At least 10/21 of the cases with AKI in this study were more likely to represent bites from Trimeresurus spp. than D. siamensis because the snake responsible was brought into the hospital, examined and described by the treating physician as "green-coloured". This study describes a previously unpublished case of AKI from envenoming by T. erythrurus in Yangon, and reviews cases of AKI following bites by this species and T. albolabris in Myanmar. This confirms that, at least on rare occasions, Trimeresurus spp. envenoming can cause AKI. This has important implications for snakebite management in Myanmar as the finding of local swelling, coagulopathy and AKI is generally considered pathognomonic of D. siamensis envenoming. Further collection of confirmed Trimeresurus spp. bites is required in Myanmar in order better to define the syndrome of envenoming and to assess the possible need for antivenom against Trimeresurus spp. in this country.

Applying Public Health Principles to Better Manage the COVID-19 Pandemic: "Community Participation," "Equity," and "Cultural Sensitivity".

Although coronavirus vaccine roll-out is beginning, standard public health practices will, for most people, remain their first line of protection for some time. Three principles guiding the pandemic control process, namely community participation, promotion of equity, and cultural sensitivity, can help people adhere to public health advice. These three principles can enhance intervention effectiveness, decreasing the rate of infection and protecting human rights, promoting social harmony and preventing unrest.

Health system and quality of care factors contributing to maternal deaths in East Java, Indonesia.

Despite most Indonesian women now receiving antenatal care on the nationally recommended four occasions and being delivered by skilled birth attendants, the nation's maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is estimated as 177 per 100,000 live births. Recent research in a rural district of Indonesia has indicated that poor service quality due to organizational and personnel factors is now a major determinant of this high MMR. The present research is an in-depth analysis of possible health service organizational and quality of care related causes of death among 30 women admitted to a peak referral hospital in a major Indonesian city. Despite their condition being complex or deteriorating, most of these women arrived at the hospital in a state where it was feasible to prevent death with good quality care. Poor application of protocols, poor information flow from frontline hospitals to the peak referral hospital, delays in emergency care, and delays in management of deteriorating patients were the main contributing factors to these deaths. Pyramidal referrals also contributed, as many women were initially referred to hospitals where their condition could not be effectively managed. While generic quality improvement measures, particularly training and monitoring for rigorous application of clinical protocols (including forward planning for deteriorating patients) will help improve the situation, the districts and hospitals need to develop capacity to assess their local situation. Unless local organisational factors, staff knowledge and skill, blood and blood product availability, and local reasons for delays in providing care are identified, it may not be possible to effectively reduce the adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Application of primary health care principles in national community health worker programs in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review protocol.

OBJECTIVE: This scoping review aims to map the available literature on the application of primary health care principles as reflected in the implementation of national-level community health worker programs in low- and middle-income countries. INTRODUCTION: There is extensive literature on how community health workers have been used to improve the health status of disadvantaged populations, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Established under the primary health care principles, national community health worker programs were expected to adopt and promote these principles to achieve improvements in health outcomes. However, there is limited evidence of the extent to which primary health care principles have been applied in the implementation of national community health worker programs. INCLUSION CRITERIA: The concept to be mapped is the application of primary health care principles in the implementation of national community health worker programs in low- and middle-income countries. Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods study designs will be included. Only English-language articles published from September 1978 to the present will be included. Study protocols, narrative reviews, systematic and scoping reviews, commentaries, text and opinion papers, viewpoints, editorials, and conference proceedings/abstracts and correspondences will be excluded. The programs operated by non-governmental organizations and articles not involving community health workers will also be excluded. METHODS: Key information sources to be searched include MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, and Scopus. Two reviewers will independently screen the titles and abstracts against the inclusion criteria. The data charting will include specific details about the concept, context, study methods, and key findings relevant to the review question. Data will be presented in diagrammatic or tabular form accompanied by a narrative summary.

Structural Quality of Services and Use of Family Planning Services in Primary Health Care Facilities in Ethiopia. How Do Public and Private Facilities Compare?

BACKGROUND: Family planning (FP) is among the important interventions that reduce maternal mortality. Poor quality FP service is associated with lower services utilisation, in turn undermining the efforts to address maternal mortality. There is currently little research on the quality of FP services in the private sector in Ethiopia, and how it compares to FP services in public facilities. METHODS: A secondary data analysis of two national surveys, Ethiopia Services Provision Assessment Plus Survey 2014 and Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey 2016, was conducted. Data from 1094 (139 private, 955 public) health facilities were analysed. In total, 3696 women were included in the comparison of users' characteristics. Logistic regression was conducted. Facility type (public vs. private) was the key exposure of interest. RESULTS: The private facilities were less likely to have implants (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 0.06; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.03, 0.12), trained FP providers (AOR = 0.23; 95% CI: 0.14, 0.41) and FP guidelines/protocols (AOR = 0.33; 95% CI: 0.19, 0.54) than public facilities but were more likely to have functional cell phones (AOR = 8.20; 95% CI: 4.95, 13.59) and water supply (AOR = 3.37; 95% CI: 1.72, 6.59). CONCLUSION: This study highlights the need for strengthening both private and public facilities for public-private partnerships to contribute to increased FP use and better health outcomes.

Clinical importance of the Mandalay spitting cobra (Naja mandalayensis) in Upper Myanmar - Bites, envenoming and ophthalmia.

Examination of 18 cobras brought to three hospitals in the Mandalay Region by patients bitten or spat at by them distinguished 3 monocled cobras (Naja kaouthia) and 15 Mandalay spitting cobras (N. mandalayensis), based on their morphological characteristics. We confirm and extend the known distributions and habitats of both N. mandalayensis and N. kaouthia in Upper Myanmar. Clinical symptoms of local and systemic envenoming by N. mandalayensis are described for the first time. These included local swelling, blistering and necrosis and life-threatening systemic neurotoxicity. More information is needed about the clinical phenotype and management of bites by N. mandalayensis, the commoner of the two cobras in Upper Myanmar. Since the current cobra antivenom manufactured in Myanmar has lower pre-clinical efficacy against N. mandalayensis than N. kaouthia, there is a need for more specific antivenom therapy.

Healthcare providers' perspectives on use of the national guideline for family planning services in Amhara Region, Ethiopia: a qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore healthcare providers' views on barriers to and facilitators of use of the national family planning (FP) guideline for FP services in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. DESIGN: Qualitative study. SETTING: Nine health facilities including two hospitals, five health centres and two health posts in Amhara Region, Northwest Ethiopia. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-one healthcare providers working in the provision of FP services in Amhara Region. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Semistructured interviews were conducted to understand healthcare providers' views on barriers to and facilitators of the FP guideline use in the selected FP services. RESULTS: While the healthcare providers' views point to a few facilitators that promote use of the guideline, more barriers were identified. The barriers included: lack of knowledge about the guideline's existence, purpose and quality, healthcare providers' personal religious beliefs, reliance on prior knowledge and tradition rather than protocols and guidelines, lack of availability or insufficient access to the guideline and inadequate training on how to use the guideline. Facilitators for the guideline use were ready access to the guideline, convenience and ease of implementation and incentives. CONCLUSIONS: While development of the guideline is an important initiative by the Ethiopian government for improving quality of care in FP services, continued use of this resource by all healthcare providers requires planning to promote facilitating factors and address barriers to use of the FP guideline. Training that includes a discussion about healthcare providers' beliefs and traditional practices as well as other factors that reduce guideline use and increasing the sufficient number of guideline copies available at the local level, as well as translation of the guideline into local language are important to support provision of quality care in FP services.

Inadequate knowledge about snakebite envenoming symptoms and application of harmful first aid methods in the community in high snakebite incidence areas of Myanmar.

INTRODUCTION: Every year millions of people in developing countries suffer from snakebite, causing a large number of deaths and long term complications. Prevention and appropriate first aid could reduce the incidence and improve the health outcomes for those who suffer bites. However, many communities where snakebite is a major issue suffer from a lack of information about prevention and first aid measures that a family or community member could take to prevent severe envenoming, complications and poor outcomes. Myanmar suffers from a high burden of snakebites with a large number of deaths. As part of a health services and community development program, a community survey was conducted to identify communities' knowledge about snakebite and their sequelae, and knowledge and practice about first aid and health services use. METHOD: 4,276 rural residents of Kyaukse and Madaya townships in the Mandalay region were recruited by cluster sampling, involving random selection of 144 villages and random sampling of 30 households from each village. One adult member of each household was interviewed using a structured questionnaire. RESULTS: The incidence of snakebite was 116/100,000 people. Respondents reported 15 different types of snakes in the area, with Russell's Viper, Cobra and Green snakes as the most common. 88% of the people informed that working in the fields and forests was when most of the bites occur. A majority knew about snakebite prevention methods such as wearing long boots. However, only a few people knew about the specific symptoms caused by snakebites. Only 39% knew about the correct methods of first aid. More than 60% mentioned tourniquet as a first aid method, though this may cause significant complications such as ischaemia of the limb. 88% said that they would take a snakebite victim to a government hospital, and 58% mentioned availability of antivenom as the reason for doing this. At the same time, the majority mentioned that traditional methods existed for first aid and treatment and 25% mentioned at least one harmful traditional method as an effective measure that they might use. CONCLUSION: The community is aware of snakebites as a major public health issue and know how to prevent them. However, the high incidence of snakebites point to lack of application of preventive methods. The community recognise the need for treatment with antivenom. However, inadequate knowledge about appropriate first aid methods, and a reliance on using tourniquets require a targeted education program. Existing knowledge in communities, albeit insufficient, provides a good starting point for mass media educational campaigns.

A comprehensive approach to managing a neglected, neglected tropical disease; The Myanmar Snakebite Project (MSP).

Snakebite is predominantly an occupational disease affecting poor rural farmers in tropical regions and was recently added to the World Health Organisation list of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD). We document an overview of methodologies developed and deployed in the Myanmar Snakebite Project, a foreign aid project largely funded by the Australian Government, with the core aim to "improve outcomes for snakebite patients". A multidisciplinary team of experts was assembled that worked in a collaborative manner with colleagues in Myanmar, first to identify problems related to managing snakebite and then develop interventions aimed to improve selected problem areas. A broad approach was adopted, covering antivenom production, antivenom distribution and health system management of snakebite. Problems identified in antivenom production included poor snake husbandry resulting in poor survival of captive specimens, lack of geographical diversity; poor horse husbandry, resulting in high mortality, inadequate stock acquisition protocols and data collection, and inappropriate immunisation and bleeding techniques; and inadequate production capacity for freeze dried antivenoms and quality control systems. These problems were addressed in various ways, resulting in some substantial improvements. Antivenom distribution is being reorganised to achieve better availability and utilisation of stock. Health system management of snakebite was assessed across all levels within the area selected for the study, in Mandalay region. A comprehensive community survey indicated that hospital statistics substantially underestimated the snakebite burden, and that access to care by local villagers was delayed by transport and cost issues compounded by lack of antivenom at the most peripheral level of the health service. A health system survey confirmed under-resourcing at the local village level. Prospective case data collection initiated at tertiary hospitals indicated the extent of the snakebite burden on health resources. Interventions initiated or planned include training of health staff, development of a core of senior trainers who can "train the trainers" nationwide in a sustainable way, development and deployment of management guidelines and algorithms for snakebite and a distribution of solar powered fridges to remote health facilities to allow storage of antivenom and prompt treatment of snakebite cases before transfer to major hospitals, thereby reducing the "bite to needle" time.

Twelve month prospective study of snakebite in a major teaching hospital in Mandalay, Myanmar; Myanmar Snakebite Project (MSP).

The Myanmar Snakebite Project is an Australian government (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) supported foreign aid project in collaboration with the Myanmar government with the aim of improving outcomes for snakebite patients in Myanmar. As part of the project a case record database was established to document prospective cases of snakebite presenting to Mandalay General Hospital, in Upper Myanmar. The study period was 12 months (1-2-2016 to 31-1-2017). Snake identity was based on a mixture of identified dead snakes brought with patients, doctor's clinical opinion and patient identification. 965 patients were enrolled during the 12 month period, of whom 948 were included for analysis. The male: female ratio was 1.58:1. Most cases involved bites to the lower limbs (82.5%) and adults involved in farm work, confirming snakebite as an occupational disease in this community. Motorised transport was by far the most common form of transport to health care and most patients sought care from the health system (87.7%), not traditional healers (11.5%) as their first point of contact. The officially promoted application of a pressure pad, bandage and immobilisation as first aid for snakebite was almost never used, while most patients used some form of tourniquet (92.0%). 85.4% of cases where a snake ID was listed were bitten by Russell's vipers. Russell's viper bites were responsible for all fatalities (9.8% of cases) and all cases of Acute Kidney Injury (AKI). For all cases, clinical features included local swelling (76.5%), local pain (62.6%), AKI (59.8%), incoagulable blood (57.9%), regional lymphadenopathy (39.8%), nausea/vomiting (40.4%), thrombocytopenia (53.6%), abdominal pain (28.8%), shock (11.8%), secondary infection (8.6%), panhypopituitarism (2.1%). AKI required renal replacement therapy (RRT) in 23.9% of cases, all ascribed to Russell's viper bite. Green pit viper bites were the next most common cause of bites (7.6%) and were associated with incoagulable blood (29%) and occasionally shock (5%) and local necrosis (3%), and in one case AKI not requiring RRT. In contrast to Russell's viper bites, green pit viper bite was most likely to occur in the home (49%). Some green pit viper patients were treated with Russell's viper antivenom (15%), presumably because they had incoagulable blood, although this antivenom is not effective against green pit viper envenoming. For the entire patient group, antivenom was given in 80.5% of cases. The most common indications were presence of coagulopathy/non-clotting blood (59.8%), local swelling (47.4%), oliguria/anuria (19.8%), heavy proteinuria (19.4%). A febrile reaction to antivenom was reported in 47.9% of cases, while anaphylaxis, occurred in 7.9% of cases.

Development of an ELISA assay to determine neutralising capacity of horse serum following immunisation with Daboia siamensis venom in Myanmar.

Snakebite envenoming is a serious problem in Myanmar. The great majority of snakebite in this country is due to Russell's Viper (Daboia siamensis). For many years, the Burma Pharmaceutical Industry has produced a monovalent antivenom to Russell's Viper in horses. At present, the only way of determining the level of antibody against D. siamensis venom in hyperimmune horse serum is to perform venom neutralisation tests in mice. In this study, we describe the development of an in vitro ELISA assay to estimate neutralising capacity of horse serum. We found a strong correlation between the ELISA assay and the venom neutralisation test in mice (r = 0.982). The assay is robust and has sufficient sensitivity (92%) and specificity (96%) to replace the venom neutralisation test in mice during the immunisation phase in horses.

Snakebite incidence in two townships in Mandalay Division, Myanmar.

INTRODUCTION: The global incidence of snakebite is estimated at more than 2.5 million cases annually, with greater than 100,000 deaths. Historically, Myanmar has one of the highest incidences of venomous snakebites. In order to improve the health outcomes of snakebite patients in Myanmar, access to accurate snakebite incidence data is crucial. The last population-based study in Myanmar was conducted more than a decade ago. In 2014, the Ministry of Health and Sports data from health facilities indicated an incidence of about 29.5 bites/ 100,000 population/year (a total of 15,079 bites). Since data from health facilities lack information about those who do not seek health care from government health services, a new population-based survey was conducted in 2 rural areas of Mandalay region. The survey data were compared to those obtained from healthcare services. METHOD: 4,276 rural respondents in Kyaukse and Madaya townships in Mandalay Division were recruited using cluster sampling that involved random selection of 150 villages and random sampling of 30 households from each village. One adult member of each household was interviewed using a structured questionnaire. RESULTS: One respondent from each of 4,276 households represented 19,877 residents from 144 villages. 24 people in these households had suffered snakebite during the last one year giving an annual incidence of 116/100,000. During the last ten years, 252 people suffered snakebites. 44.1% of the victims were women. 14% of the villages reported 4 or more bites during the last ten years, whereas 27% villages reported no snakebites. 92.4% of the victims recovered fully, 5.4% died, and 2% suffered long term health issues. One victim was reported to have died from causes unrelated to the snakebite. While there was no statistically significant difference between outcomes for children and adults, 4 of 38 of those under 18 years of age died compared to 7 of 133 adults between 19 to 40 years of age. CONCLUSION: This incidence reported by the community members points to substantially more snakebites than the number of snakebite patients attending health facilities. This higher incidence points to the need for a nation-wide population-based survey, community education about gaining access to care where antivenom is available, and to the potential need for a larger supply of antivenom and expansion of medical care in rural areas.

Root-Cause Analysis of Persistently High Maternal Mortality in a Rural District of Indonesia: Role of Clinical Care Quality and Health Services Organizational Factors.

BACKGROUND: Despite significant reduction in maternal mortality, there are still many regions in the world that suffer from high mortality. District Kutai Kartanegara, Indonesia, is one such region where consistently high maternal mortality was observed despite high rate of delivery by skilled birth attendants. METHOD: Thirty maternal deaths were reviewed using verbal autopsy interviews, terminal event reporting, medical records' review, and Death Audit Committee reports, using a comprehensive root-cause analysis framework including Risk Identification, Signal Services, Emergency Obstetrics Care Evaluation, Quality, and 3 Delays. FINDINGS: The root causes were found in poor quality of care, which caused hospital to be unprepared to manage deteriorating patients. In hospital, poor implementation of standard operating procedures was rooted in inadequate skills, lack of forward planning, ineffective communication, and unavailability of essential services. In primary care, root causes included inadequate risk management, referrals to facilities where needed services are not available, and lack of coordination between primary healthcare and hospitals. CONCLUSION: There is an urgent need for a shift in focus to quality of care through knowledge, skills, and support for consistent application of protocols, making essential services available, effective risk assessment and management, and facilitating timely referrals to facilities that are adequately equipped.