Qualitative healthcare worker survey: Retrospective cross-sectional case study on COVID-19 in the African context.

Background: Despite the presence of COVID-19 epidemiologic data in Africa, there are gaps in the understanding of healthcare workers' concerns and fears early in the pandemic. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional multi-country pan-African qualitative survey case study on the perceived effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers in the continent focused specifically on personal safety and misinformation. The survey was distributed to 13 countries via snowball sampling of practitioners between April 22 and May 15, 2020. The survey solicited free-form answers, resulting in a large spectrum of responses. Qualitative analysis included open and axial coding methods for thematic emergence. Results: A total of 489 analyzable responses were recorded. The majority of respondents (n = 273, 57%) highlighted personal safety concerns including lack of resources and training to prevent infection (33%); fear of infection and transmission (24%); lack of public awareness and compliance with regulations (12%); governmental concerns (9%) and economic insecurity (11%) amongst others. 328 respondents (67%) reported having heard misinformation about COVID-19. Responses included misinformation regarding origin of the virus (11%), false modes of transmission (6%), differential effect for specific groups (30%), unproven cures (35%), and disbelief in existence (11%). Responses for misinformation and fears revealed categorical associations between certain countries. Conclusion: Addressing fears and concerns of frontline healthcare workers facilitates their essential role in combating community misinformation, and further understanding could provide essential insight to institutions and governments to direct resource allotment and community education.

Hepatitis B Awareness and Vaccination Patterns among Healthcare Workers in Africa.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination patterns and the understanding of its risks among healthcare workers (HCWs) is a critical step to decrease transmission. However, the depth of this understanding is understudied. We distributed surveys to HCWs in 12 countries in Africa. Surveys had nine multiple-choice questions that assessed HCWs' awareness and understanding of HBV. Participants included consultants, medical trainees, nurses, students, laboratory personnel, and other hospital workers. Surveys were completed anonymously. Fisher's exact test was used for analysis, with a P-value of < 0.05 considered significant; 1,044 surveys were collected from Kenya, Egypt, Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi, Madagascar, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and Sierra Leone. Hepatitis B virus serostatus awareness, vaccination rate, and vaccination of HCWs' children were 65%, 61%, and 48%, respectively. Medical trainees had higher serostatus awareness, vaccination rate, and vaccination of their children than HCWs in other occupations (79% versus 62%, P < 0.001; 74% versus 58%, P < 0.001; and 62% versus 45%, P = 0.006, respectively). Cost was cited as the most frequent reason for non-vaccination. West African countries were more aware of their serostatus but less often vaccinated than East African countries (79% versus 59%, P < 0.0001 and 52% versus 60%, P = 0.03, respectively). West African countries cited cost as the reason for non-vaccination more than East African countries (59% versus 40%, P = 0.0003). Our study shows low HBV serostatus awareness and vaccination rate among HCWs in Africa, and reveals gaps in the perception and understanding of HBV prevention that should be addressed to protect HCWs and improve their capacity to control HBV infection.

RETRACTED: Hydroxychloroquine in the Treatment of COVID-19: A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Study.

RETRACTED ARTICLE: The COVID-19 pandemic is showing an exponential growth, mandating an urgent need to develop an effective treatment. Indeed, to date, a well-established therapy is still lacking. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) added to standard care in patients with COVID-19. This was a multicenter, randomized controlled trial conducted at three major university hospitals in Egypt. One hundred ninety-four patients with confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 were included in the study after signing informed consent. They were equally randomized into two arms: 97 patients administrated HCQ plus standard care (HCQ group) and 97 patients administered only standard care as a control arm (control group). The primary endpoints were recovery within 28 days, need for mechanical ventilation, or death. The two groups were matched for age and gender. There was no significant difference between them regarding any of the baseline characteristics or laboratory parameters. Four patients (4.1%) in the HCQ group and 5 (5.2%) patients in the control group needed mechanical ventilation (P = 0.75). The overall mortality did not differ between the two groups, as six patients (6.2%) died in the HCQ group and 5 (5.2%) died in the control group (P = 0.77). Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that HCQ treatment was not significantly associated with decreased mortality in COVID-19 patients. So, adding HCQ to standard care did not add significant benefit, did not decrease the need for ventilation, and did not reduce mortality rates in COVID-19 patients.