Criterios de referencia y barreras para la atención de personas con baja visión en Santander / Criteria for referral and barriers to care for people with low vision in Santander

Objetivo: Identificar criterios de derivación y barreras percibidas por los optómetras para la rehabilitación de personas con baja visión en Santander. Métodos: Estudio de corte transversal que incluyó 82 optómetras de municipios de Santander, seleccionados mediante muestreo intencionado. Se diseñó un cuestionario con 36 preguntas para recolectar los datos que son reportados empleando estadística descriptiva. Resultados: El 47,5 % de los profesionales tiene claro el nivel de agudeza visual para clasificar a una persona con baja visión. Las principales barreras identificadas para el acceso a servicios de baja visión fueron: el proceso de derivación dentro del sistema de salud es engorroso (74,39 %), falta de servicios cerca (57,31 %) y considerar que los pacientes no pueden pagar las ayudas (48,78 %). Discusión: Es necesario fortalecer la formación de los optómetras para mejorar los procesos de identificación, atención y rehabilitación. Conclusiones: Es importante ubicar como prioritaria la discapacidad visual en Santander, para así robustecer la red de atención en salud.

Objective: To identify referral criteria and barriers perceived by optometrists for the rehabilitation of people with low vision in Santander. Methods: Cross-sectional study, which included 82 optometrists from municipalities of Santander, selected by purposive sampling. A questionnaire with 36 questions was designed to collect data that are reported using descriptive statistics. Results: A total of 47.5% of the professionals are clear about the level of visual acuity to classify a person with low vision. The main barriers identified for access to low vision services were: the referral process within the health system is cumbersome (74.39%), lack of services nearby (57.31%) and considering that patients cannot afford the aids (48.78%). Discussion: It is necessary to strengthen the training of optometrists to improve the processes of identification, care and rehabilitation. Conclusions: It is important to prioritize visual impairment in Santander in order to strengthen the health care network.

Rehabilitación de la baja visión: Un asunto incipiente / Low vision rehabilitation: An incipient issue

Introducción: Las personas con baja visión requieren de un proceso de rehabilitación de la visión que les permita optimizar su resto visual, mitigando así el impacto de la discapacidad. Objetivo: Describir las condiciones del acceso a la rehabilitación de la visión en Bucaramanga y su Área Metropolitana. Materiales y Métodos: Se realizó un estudio de caso colectivo tomando elementos de la fenomenología. Se asumió la postura teórica de Andersen y colaboradores. Se realizaron entrevistas semi-estructuradas a 11 pacientes y profesionales involucrados en la atención y rehabilitación, residentes en municipios del área metropolitana de Bucaramanga. El análisis se hizo en tres momentos: descubrimiento, codificación e interpretación de los datos. Resultados: Dos categorías emergen del estudio: 1. Rehabilitación de la visión: Un asunto incipiente. 2. Experiencia de las personas con baja visión frente a los procesos de atención para el manejo de la baja visión, con sus subcategorías: Fallas en la identificación y orientación frente al manejo de la baja visión y Dificultades para asistir a las atenciones clínicas y acceso a dispositivos. Discusión: Describir las condiciones de acceso a los servicios de rehabilitación puede contribuir a generar estrategias de intervención que permitan abordar las barreras identificadas. Conclusiones: Las consecuencias de la baja visión pueden ser atenuadas al acceder a procesos de rehabilitación; sin embargo, en los cuatro municipios participantes las personas experimentan múltiples barreras para lograr su rehabilitación, lo que evidencia la necesidad de establecer mecanismos que permitan el ejercicio del derecho a la salud de las personas con discapacidad visual.

Introduction: People with low vision need a vision rehabilitation process that allows them to optimize their remaining vision and thus mitigate the impact of the disability. Objective: To describe the conditions for access to vision rehabilitation in Bucaramanga and its metropolitan area. Materials and Methods: A collective case study was conducted by taking elements from phenomenology. The theoretical position of Andersen and collaborators was assumed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 patients and professionals involved in care and rehabilitation residing in municipalities in the metropolitan area of Bucaramanga. The analysis was done in three stages: discovery, coding, and interpretation of the data. Results: Two categories emerge from the study: 1) Vision rehabilitation: An incipient issue, and 2) People with low vision experience in low vision management care processes; the latter with the following subcategories: Failures in the identification and orientation to low vision management and difficulties in attending clinical care and accessing devices. Discussion: Describing the conditions for accessing rehabilitation services can contribute to designing intervention strategies to address the identified barriers. Conclusions: The consequences of low vision can be mitigated by accessing rehabilitation processes; however, in the four participating municipalities, people face multiple barriers to rehabilitation. This situation evidences the need to establish mechanisms that allow people with visual impairments to exercise their right to health.

Introdução: As pessoas com baixa visão necessitam de um processo de reabilitação visual que lhes permita otimizar o descanso visual, mitigando assim o impacto da deficiência. Objetivo: Descrever as condições de acesso à reabilitação visual em Bucaramanga e sua Área Metropolitana. Materiais e Métodos: Realizou-se um estudo de caso coletivo a partir de elementos da fenomenologia. foi assumido posição teórica de Andersen e colaboradores. Foram realizadas entrevistas semiestruturadas com 11 pacientes e profissionais envolvidos no cuidado e reabilitação, residentes em municípios da área metropolitana de Bucaramanga. A análise foi feita em três momentos: descoberta, codificação e interpretação dos dados. Resultados: Duas categorias emergem do estudo: 1. Reabilitação da visão: uma questão emergente. 2. Vivência das pessoas com baixa visão quanto aos processos de cuidado para o manejo da visão subnormal, com suas subcategorias: Falhas na identificação e orientação quanto ao manejo da visão subnormal e Dificuldades no atendimento clínico e acesso aos dispositivos. Discussão: Descrever as condições de acesso aos serviços de reabilitação pode contribuir para gerar estratégias de intervenção que permitam enfrentar as barreiras identificadas. Conclusões: As consequências da baixa visão podem ser mitigadas com acesso a processos de reabilitação; no entanto, nos quatro municípios participantes, as pessoas enfrentam múltiplas barreiras para alcançar sua reabilitação, o que mostra a necessidade de estabelecer mecanismos que permitam às pessoas com deficiência visual exercer o direito à saúde.

Clinical profile of ocular injuries in a geographically isolated Colombian municipality.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize epidemiologically eye trauma in the municipality of Santa Rosa Del Sur, Bolívar, Colombia from June 2015 to May 2016. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive observational study of eye injuries was performed in patients recruited consecutively. Trauma characterization was performed following the international Birmingham Eye Trauma Terminology System (BETTS) classification and incorporating ocular adnexa and burns. Injury causes, sociodemographic and clinical variables were included. RESULTS: There were 146 people with eye trauma (149 eyes) during the calendar year. The incidence was 3.61 per 1000 inhabitants: 94% (136) were men, 50.34% (73) traumas in the right eye and three people with bilateral traumas. 71.72% of the injuries were occupational accidents, the highest frequency being among people between 25 and 34 years of age 45 people, (31.03%); 8 children were affected. Applying the BETTS classification, there were 98.67% (147) with closed globe injury. Of these cases, 87.07% (128) were lamellar lacerations and 12.93% (19) contusions. Two eyes with open globe injury. The most compromised structure was the cornea in 75.84% (113). CONCLUSIONS: The data provide epidemiological characterization of eye injuries in a geographically isolated Colombian municipality. The male sex, informal work and lack of protective elements at work are factors more frequently seen in patients with eye injuries.

A multi-country study of the economic burden of dengue fever: Vietnam, Thailand, and Colombia.

BACKGROUND: Dengue fever is a major public health concern in many parts of the tropics and subtropics. The first dengue vaccine has already been licensed in six countries. Given the growing interests in the effective use of the vaccine, it is critical to understand the economic burden of dengue fever to guide decision-makers in setting health policy priorities. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A standardized cost-of-illness study was conducted in three dengue endemic countries: Vietnam, Thailand, and Colombia. In order to capture all costs during the entire period of illness, patients were tested with rapid diagnostic tests on the first day of their clinical visits, and multiple interviews were scheduled until the patients recovered from the current illness. Various cost items were collected such as direct medical and non-medical costs, indirect costs, and non-out-of-pocket costs. In addition, socio-economic factors affecting disease severity were also identified by adopting a logit model. We found that total cost per episode ranges from $141 to $385 for inpatient and from $40 to $158 outpatient, with Colombia having the highest and Thailand having the lowest. The percentage of the private economic burden of dengue fever was highest in the low-income group and lowest in the high-income group. The logit analyses showed that early treatment, higher education, and better knowledge of dengue disease would reduce the probability of developing more severe illness. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The cost of dengue fever is substantial in the three dengue endemic countries. Our study findings can be used to consider accelerated introduction of vaccines into the public and private sector programs and prioritize alternative health interventions among competing health problems. In addition, a community would be better off by propagating the socio-economic factors identified in this study, which may prevent its members from developing severe illness in the long run.

Validez de constructo de la escala NEI-VFQ-25 en una población colombiana / Validity of NEI-VFQ scale construct in a Colombian population

Objetivo: medir la validez de constructo de la escala NEI-VFQ-25 en una población colombiana con enfermedad ocular crónica. Métodos: se evaluó la tecnología diagnóstica mediante el Modelo Rasch. Se calculó una muestra para garantizar la estabilidad en la calibración de los ítems. Se incluyeron hombres y mujeres de 40-70 años de edad, con enfermedad ocular crónica bilateral, a quienes, previo consentimiento informado, se les aplicó, vía telefónica, la escala NEI-VFQ-25. Resultados: se entrevistaron 206 personas con edad promedio de 58,1 años, quienes presentaban glaucoma (21,7 por ciento), catarata (36,9 por ciento) o algún tipo de retinopatía (35,4 por ciento). Se eliminaron dos ítems del cuestionario original, por funcionamiento diferencial (DIF) y cuatro por ajuste al modelo. Se estandarizaron todas las preguntas a tres opciones de respuesta, y quedó una escala conformada por 17 ítems que cumplía con los criterios de validez de constructo. Conclusión: la escala NEI-VFQ mostró validez sustantiva, de contenido, generalización y estructural, en personas de 40 a 70 años con diagnóstico de glaucoma, catarata y retinopatía(AU)

Objective: to measure the validity of the NEI-VFQ-25 scale construct in a Colombian population with chronic ocular disease. Methods: the diagnostic technology was evaluated through Rasch model. A sample was estimated to guarantee the stability of item gaging. Forty to seventy years-old men and women, with chronic bilateral ocular disease, participated. After informed consent, they were applied the NEI-VFQ-25 scale by phone. Results: two hundred and six persons aged 58.1 years as average, who presented with glaucoma (21.7 percent), cataract (36.9 percent) or some type of retinopathy (35.4 percent). Two items were taken out of the original questionnaire because of differential functioning and four items due to model adjustment. All the questions were then standardized to have three response options, and finally the scale was made up of 17 items which met the validity criteria for construct. Conclusions: NEI-VFQ scale showed substantial, content, generalization and structural validity for application in 40 to 70 years old people with diagnosis of glaucoma, cataract and retinopathy(AU)

Validez de constructo de la escala NEI-VFQ-25 en una población colombiana / Validity of NEI-VFQ scale construct in a Colombian population

Objetivo: medir la validez de constructo de la escala NEI-VFQ-25 en una población colombiana con enfermedad ocular crónica. Métodos: se evaluó la tecnología diagnóstica mediante el Modelo Rasch. Se calculó una muestra para garantizar la estabilidad en la calibración de los ítems. Se incluyeron hombres y mujeres de 40-70 años de edad, con enfermedad ocular crónica bilateral, a quienes, previo consentimiento informado, se les aplicó, vía telefónica, la escala NEI-VFQ-25. Resultados: se entrevistaron 206 personas con edad promedio de 58,1 años, quienes presentaban glaucoma (21,7 por ciento), catarata (36,9 por ciento) o algún tipo de retinopatía (35,4 por ciento). Se eliminaron dos ítems del cuestionario original, por funcionamiento diferencial (DIF) y cuatro por ajuste al modelo. Se estandarizaron todas las preguntas a tres opciones de respuesta, y quedó una escala conformada por 17 ítems que cumplía con los criterios de validez de constructo. Conclusión: la escala NEI-VFQ mostró validez sustantiva, de contenido, generalización y estructural, en personas de 40 a 70 años con diagnóstico de glaucoma, catarata y retinopatía(AU)

Objective: to measure the validity of the NEI-VFQ-25 scale construct in a Colombian population with chronic ocular disease. Methods: the diagnostic technology was evaluated through Rasch model. A sample was estimated to guarantee the stability of item gaging. Forty to seventy years-old men and women, with chronic bilateral ocular disease, participated. After informed consent, they were applied the NEI-VFQ-25 scale by phone. Results: two hundred and six persons aged 58.1 years as average, who presented with glaucoma (21.7 percent), cataract (36.9 percent) or some type of retinopathy (35.4 percent). Two items were taken out of the original questionnaire because of differential functioning and four items due to model adjustment. All the questions were then standardized to have three response options, and finally the scale was made up of 17 items which met the validity criteria for construct. Conclusions: NEI-VFQ scale showed substantial, content, generalization and structural validity for application in 40 to 70 years old people with diagnosis of glaucoma, cataract and retinopathy(AU)