The impact of COVID‐19 on patients with neurological disorders and their access to healthcare in Africa: A review of the literature

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Abstract

Abstract Introduction The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic has hampered the progress of neurological healthcare services for patients across Africa. Before the pandemic, access to these services was already limited due to elevated treatment costs among uninsured individuals, shortage of medicines, equipment, and qualified personnel, immense distance between residing areas and neurological facilities, and a limited understanding of neurological diseases and their presentation by both the health workers and the African population. Methodology The databases PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and the National Library of Medicine were searched for literature. All articles on neurological disorders in Africa were considered. Aim This review article explores the challenges of providing the best services for patients suffering from neurological disorders in Africa amid the COVID‐19 pandemic and provides evidence‐based recommendations. Results As Africa's governments made more resources available to support patients affected by COVID‐19, neurological care received less priority and the capacity and competency to treat patients with neurological disorders thus suffered substantially. Both short‐term and long‐term strategies are needed to improve the quality of neurological services after the pandemic in the region. Conclusion To strengthen Africa's neurological services capability during and after the COVID‐19 pandemic, African governments must ensure appropriate healthcare resource allocation, perform neurology management training, and increase health security measures in medication supply. Long‐term strategies include incorporating responsible finance and resource procurement and advancement of tele‐neurology. International collaboration is essential to promote the sustainable improvement of neurological services in Africa.

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Virtually Perfect? Telemedicine for Covid-19

Judd Hollander, Brendan Carr (2020)

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Christopher Murray, Lewis Evans, J Klavus … (2003)

Health policy makers have long been concerned with protecting people from the possibility that ill health will lead to catastrophic financial payments and subsequent impoverishment. Yet catastrophic expenditure is not rare. We investigated the extent of catastrophic health expenditure as a first step to developing appropriate policy responses. We used a cross-country analysis design. Data from household surveys in 59 countries were used to explore, by regression analysis, variables associated with catastrophic health expenditure. We defined expenditure as being catastrophic if a household's financial contributions to the health system exceed 40% of income remaining after subsistence needs have been met. The proportion of households facing catastrophic payments from out-of-pocket health expenses varied widely between countries. Catastrophic spending rates were highest in some countries in transition, and in certain Latin American countries. Three key preconditions for catastrophic payments were identified: the availability of health services requiring payment, low capacity to pay, and the lack of prepayment or health insurance. People, particularly in poor households, can be protected from catastrophic health expenditures by reducing a health system's reliance on out-of-pocket payments and providing more financial risk protection. Increase in the availability of health services is critical to improving health in poor countries, but this approach could raise the proportion of households facing catastrophic expenditure; risk protection policies would be especially important in this situation.

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Prioritizing the Mental Health and Well-Being of Healthcare Workers: An Urgent Global Public Health Priority

Lene E. Søvold, John A. Naslund, Antonis Kousoulis … (2021)

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on health systems in most countries, and in particular, on the mental health and well-being of health workers on the frontlines of pandemic response efforts. The purpose of this article is to provide an evidence-based overview of the adverse mental health impacts on healthcare workers during times of crisis and other challenging working conditions and to highlight the importance of prioritizing and protecting the mental health and well-being of the healthcare workforce, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. First, we provide a broad overview of the elevated risk of stress, burnout, moral injury, depression, trauma, and other mental health challenges among healthcare workers. Second, we consider how public health emergencies exacerbate these concerns, as reflected in emerging research on the negative mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers. Further, we consider potential approaches for overcoming these threats to mental health by exploring the value of practicing self-care strategies, and implementing evidence based interventions and organizational measures to help protect and support the mental health and well-being of the healthcare workforce. Lastly, we highlight systemic changes to empower healthcare workers and protect their mental health and well-being in the long run, and propose policy recommendations to guide healthcare leaders and health systems in this endeavor. This paper acknowledges the stressors, burdens, and psychological needs of the healthcare workforce across health systems and disciplines, and calls for renewed efforts to mitigate these challenges among those working on the frontlines during public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.