Ferdinand C Mukumbang
Biographic Data
| ID | 197748 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Ferdinand C Mukumbang |
| GIVEN NAMES | Ferdinand C |
| FAMILY NAME | Mukumbang |
| SIGNATURE | MUKUMBANG F C |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Washington |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1441-2172 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 56 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 76 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 42 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 14 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Implementation factors of group antenatal care in low-resource settings in Tanzania
Antenatal care (ANC) is essential for improving maternal and newborn health, yet many women do not complete the recommended follow-up visits and often experience suboptimal quality of care and weak provider-client interactions. Group antenatal care (G-ANC) offers an alternative service delivery model that combines clinical assessments with group-based education, facilitated discussion, and peer support for women with similar gestational age (GA).…
A service evaluation of clinicians’ Signposting of asylum seekers and refugees (ASRs) attending an emergency department in South-West England
Recent changes to health entitlements for asylum seekers and refugees (ASRs) in the UK may exacerbate existing barriers of access to healthcare for ASR patients and lead to greater numbers seeking emergency care. In the city in South-West England where this Formative Service Evaluation took place, there has been an increase in the population of ASR patients living in temporary accommodation and their usage of local health services is expected to …
Bringing Together Linked Coding and Realist Thematic Analysis
[Programme] theory development is a central component of any realist study. However, there are few published examples that demonstrate how combining established realist approaches can enhance the development and elicitation of [programme] theory in complex healthcare settings. This paper aims to contribute to the growing realist literature by presenting a step-by-step process used in a realist study focused on refugee mental health services in Ca…
Potential Applications of Realist Methodologies to Implementation Science Research
There is a growing demand for more focus on developing and testing theories in implementation science (IS). This involves creating and testing theories about the different dynamics contributing to implementation strategies’ success or failure in different settings. While the application of realist methodologies is gaining traction in IS, their contributions to the field have not been explicitly articulated. To this end, we highlight six potential…
Understanding global health research collaborations
INTRODUCTION: Global North-South research collaborations are complex and dynamic despite their centrality to global health research. We conducted an Indigenous-inspired realist evaluation to examine how and why research collaborations under the 'African Research Initiative for Scientific Excellence' programme work to strengthen African researchers' health research capacity. With funding from a Global North partner, the programme supports multiple…
Why should we be concerned by internalised racism in global health
Internalised racism constitutes an adoption of beliefs about one’s inferiority, weaknesses or shortcomings as a function of racial hierarchy affecting one’s identity and self-worth, thoughts, emotions and behaviours. Internalised racism stems from widely known and discussed institutional racial discrimination, which perpetuates epistemic injustice, social injustice and health inequities in global health. In this article, reflecting on our experie…
Advancing the safe motherhood initiative
Although the Safe Motherhood Initiative is currently a global priority, the implications of maternal self-medication for meeting Safe Motherhood and Sustainable Development Goal 3 objectives in low- and middle-income countries has yet to be addressed. Although local medical doctors are an influential stakeholder group, able to determine health policy, how they view and feel about the problem of antimicrobial self-medication during pregnancy is no…
Influence of women’s legal status on pregnancy outcomes and quality of care
In 2020, approximately 281 million people lived in a country other than their country of birth. In Geneva, Switzerland, people born in other countries constitute 40.2% of the population. We aimed to describe the population of pregnant women delivering at the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG) maternity department and to identify associations between legal status, migration status, and economic precarity with quality care and health outcomes. We…
Patient involvement in the biopsychosocial integrated primary care model
According to the World Health Organization, involving patient in healthcare provision and decision-making about their health is a key factor in ensuring healthcare quality. This study explores patients’ involvement in choosing their care strategies, their responsibility for holistic care, and their ability to support biopsychosocial model of care. This qualitative research was conducted in three health districts in South Kivu province, eastern De…
Factors shaping Covid-19 vaccine acceptability among young people in South Africa and Nigeria
Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy among young people can be seen as an acute – but not isolated – phenomenon within an alarming longer-term trend of broader vaccine distrust in Africa. Yet there are still considerable knowledge gaps in relation to the scope and drivers of low vaccine acceptability among young people. Moreover, better frameworks and tools are needed to conceptualise and better understand acceptability in this population group. We applied…
“Resilience amidst challenges”
Primary healthcare (PHC) systems are the first point of contact for healthcare users and are critical for disease prevention and early treatment. The COVID-19 pandemic overwhelmed PHC systems globally, including in sub-Saharan Africa, significantly impacting access to essential services. We describe the experiences of community PHC users’ accessing and utilizing health services at 15 purposively selected health centers during the COVID-19 pandemi…
“I live with pain, it cannot go away”
Childhood and adolescent tuberculosis (TB) survivors often face ongoing challenges even after completing their treatment. While the biomedical aspects of TB recovery are well studied, there is still limited understanding of how young survivors cope with the long-term impact of TB on their daily lives, development, and aspirations. Guided by an illness-narrative and phenomenological perspective, this qualitative study explored the lived experience…
Rewarding behavior change in rural communities
Worldwide, pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria remain leading causes of death for children under the age of five, even though these diseases are preventable and can be treated. In public health, complex behavioral change interventions are often used. These interventions employ multi-component strategies and work on domains, such as education, policy, and environmental change, to promote prevention, control, and management of childhood diseases. In T…
Strategies to build trust in the conduct of clinical trials
While clinical trials have evolved and improved over time producing significant advances in diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases, there are equally key challenges such as feasibility of some clinical trials and most importantly the issue of trust in the conduct of clinical trials. Thus, this study provides scientific evidence to address challenges associated with clinical trials conduct as well as a framework describing appropriate tru…
A Critical juncture in global health
The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has played an important role in expanding access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and significantly reducing HIV/AIDS mortality globally. However, policy shifts in the United States(US) aimed at realigning foreign aid with US national interests have introduced significant uncertainty regarding PEPFAR funding in 2025, threatening to undermine decades of progress in the global HIV/AIDS res…
Innovative Policy Supports for Integration in Health and Social Care Focused on Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Populations in Australia
The fragmented nature of Australian health and social care systems present a barrier to integrated care. Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities are recognised as a priority population with unmet health and social needs. This study describes policy supports for programs that promote health and social care integration with a CALD focus, including governance and partnerships; workforce and staffing; funding and payment; and data sh…
Balancing realist review outputs with the needs of policymakers and practitioners
A realist review is a theory-driven approach to synthesizing evidence based on the realist philosophy of science. Realist reviews are conducted to provide the policy and practice community with a rich, detailed and practical understanding of complex social interventions that will likely be of much more use to them when planning and implementing programmes. Robust realist reviews must balance philosophical engagement, methodological rigour and rel…
Beliefs of Pentecostal pastors on the use of antiretroviral treatment among Pentecostal Christians living with HIV in a suburb of Cape Town-South Africa
The global public health community accepts antiretroviral therapy (ART) for controlling and managing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, within some communities, claims of faith or miraculous healing of HIV and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) by Pentecostal pastors continue to spark controversies. This paper reports on an exploratory qualitative study to explore the beliefs held by Pentecostal pastors regarding the use of ART a…
Understanding shared decision-making among patients with low health literacy
This realist review emphasises understanding how and why shared decision-making benefits adults with low health literacy, advocating for tailored interventions and active engagement in healthcare for this vulnerable population
Strengthening health research capacity for postgraduate trainees
International research partnerships are crucial to strengthening research capacity (RCS) efforts. However, little is known about how such partnerships work to enhance the capacity of postgraduate trainees. We applied an Indigenous realist evaluation (RE) approach to examine how the ‘African Research Initiative for Scientific Excellence’ (ARISE) programme works to strengthen the capacity for trainees. The Indigenous RE integrates critical and scie…
Mechanism-Based Middle-Range Theories
Realist synthesis is a recognized methodological approach to evidence synthesis to inform evidence-based health policy and practice. The implicit assumption behind research synthesis is that the evidence it generates should be generalizable--drawing broad inferences from specific observations. While this understanding is generally shared among social scientists, tensions exist between having generalizable evidence and how this evidence can be use…
Advancing the Decolonisation Agenda Through an Indigenous Realist Evaluation Approach
Background: Evaluation theory and practice have great potential in catalysing transformative change and furthering decoloniality in [global] health research in Indigenous or formerly colonised societies. Realist evaluation approach can be a good fit for promoting decolonisation due to its strong focus on context and causal mechanisms. Methods: Drawing on the authors' work on strengthening health research capacity and using the 'African Research I…
Enhanced or hindered research benefits? A realist review of community engagement and participatory research practices for non-communicable disease prevention in low- and middle-income countries
INTRODUCTION: Community engagement and participatory research are widely used and considered important for ethical health research and interventions. Based on calls to unpack their complexity and observed biases in their favour, we conducted a realist review with a focus on non-communicable disease prevention. The aim was to generate an understanding of how and why engagement or participatory practices enhance or hinder the benefits of non-commun…
Cross-border use of health services
Cross-border use of health services has been studied mainly as travel from high- to low- and middle-income countries (“medical tourism”). The movement between low- and middle-income countries has been less studied. The objectives were; 1) to describe the frequency, types of services used, and health needs associated with cross-border utilization of health services at the Mexico-Guatemala border; 2) to explore the drivers of cross-border use among…
Empowerment and utilization of HIV testing among partnered women in Zambia
In Zambia, women are disproportionally more affected by HIV compared to men. This has mainly been attributed to harmful gender norms that enhance male dominance and disempower women, preventing them from exercising their right to negotiate for safe sex and utilizing HIV prevention services such as HIV testing. This study examined associations between empowerment and HIV testing among married and partnered women. We analyzed secondary data from th…
Retroductive Theorizing
Mixed methods studies in social sciences are predominantly employed to explore broad, complex, and multifaceted issues and to evaluate policies and interventions. The integration of qualitative and quantitative methods in social sciences most often follows the Peircean pragmatic approach—abductive hypothesis formation followed by deductive and inductive testing/confirmation—with limited theorizing properties. This paper contributes to the field o…
Examining the Application of Retroductive Theorizing in Realist-Informed Studies
Introduction: Transcendental realism, the philosophical perspective dealing with the existence of causal powers governed by universal laws of nature, provides a useful framework for research conducted in the social sciences, including the field of health policy and systems research. Transcendental realism has been criticized, however, for offering weak methodological guidance for conducting research. Consequently, realist-informed studies are dee…
Using the realist interview approach to maintain theoretical awareness in realist studies
Realist evaluation submits that theories and models of how, why, for whom and under what circumstances programs work could be formulated by conceptualizing the relational links between the context within which programs are implemented, the generative mechanisms the programs trigger, and the outcomes of interest. Qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis allow for the description of the relevant context, the generative mechanisms, …
Leveraging the Photovoice Methodology for Critical Realist Theorizing
Photovoice is a visual research methodology that integrates images and words to encourage the exploration of the experiences, perceptions, and meaning-making processes of individuals on various social phenomena. As a participatory qualitative methodology, Photovoice has been used within the interpretivist paradigm to explore various [public] health and social phenomena to enhance participants' (co-investigators') engagement and to lobby for polic…
The contributions of scientific realism and critical realism to realist evaluation
Realist evaluation has gained prominence in the field of evaluation in recent years. Its theory-driven approach to explaining how and why programmes work or not makes it attractive to many novices, early career researchers, and organizations implementing various programmes globally and relevant to policymakers and programme implementers. While realist evaluation seeks to be pragmatic, adopting principles and methods that can be used to help focus…
Understanding for whom, how and why Sydney Local Health District’s Integrated Response was Effective in Addressing Covid-19
The SLHD's progress towards a 'whole of health' approach, empowered and enabled the district to effectively work within and across sectors to address the pandemic in a people-centred manner. Sustaining the contextual conditions and mechanisms, that facilitated effective integration, will be beneficial beyond the pandemic
Patients Are Not Following the [Adherence] Club Rules Anymore
There is growing evidence that differentiated care models employed to manage treatment-experienced patients on antiretroviral therapy could improve adherence to medication and retention in care. We conducted a realist evaluation to determine how, why, for whom, and under what health system context the adherence club intervention works (or not) in real-life implementation. In the first phase, we developed an initial program theory of the adherence…
Mechanism-Based Middle-Range Theories
Realist synthesis is a recognized methodological approach to evidence synthesis to inform evidence-based health policy and practice. The implicit assumption behind research synthesis is that the evidence it generates should be generalizable--drawing broad inferences from specific observations. While this understanding is generally shared among social scientists, tensions exist between having generalizable evidence and how this evidence can be use…
Advancing the Decolonisation Agenda Through an Indigenous Realist Evaluation Approach
Background: Evaluation theory and practice have great potential in catalysing transformative change and furthering decoloniality in [global] health research in Indigenous or formerly colonised societies. Realist evaluation approach can be a good fit for promoting decolonisation due to its strong focus on context and causal mechanisms. Methods: Drawing on the authors' work on strengthening health research capacity and using the 'African Research I…
Formulating Initial Programme Theories of the Healthy Homes and Neighbourhoods Integrated Care Initiative
The programme theories unveil that integrated care initiatives should foster positive relationships at all levels to ensure favourable consumer outcomes
You Have to Withstand That Because You Have Come for What You Have Come for
Nationwide rollout of antiretroviral treatment (ART) is increasing the number of older persons living with HIV (OPLWH) in South Africa. Yet, little is known about how the sociological aspects of ageing - stigma, finances and family dynamics - impact access to ART. Qualitative interviews with 23 persons aged 50-plus living near Cape Town highlight the barriers and facilitators to the acceptability, affordability and availability of ART access amon…
Applying Qualitative Methods to Investigate Social Actions for Justice Using Social Media
Social media is becoming a valuable resource for hosting activism as illustrated in the rise of the hashtag movements, such as #MeToo and #Endrapeculture, used to speak out against rape culture. In this article, we discuss the use of social media as the source and object of research, using the case of the 2016 South African #nakedprotest. We used naturalistic observation on Facebook comment threads and followed these up with online Facebook focus…
Perceptions of body size, obesity threat and the willingness to lose weight among black South African adults
Low perception of threat of obesity to health particularly among overweight women in this community indicates a considerable challenge to obesity control. Community health education and promotion programmes that increase awareness about the risk associated with overweight, and improve the motivation for physical activity and maintenance of optimal body weight are needed
I attend at Vanguard and I attend here as well”
The population living with HIV is aging increasing the likelihood that those living with HIV will also be living with other chronic conditions including NCDs. Thus, it is essential that health policy address this basic need to integrate HIV and NCD care
Exploring service providers’ perspectives on the prevention and management of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in South Africa
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is among the leading causes of developmental and intellectual disabilities in individuals. Although efforts are being made toward the prevention and management of FASD in South Africa, the prevalence remains high. The sustained high prevalence could be attributed to several factors, including the lack of policy for a coordinated effort to prevent, diagnose and manage FASD nationally. In this study, our aim w…
Patients Are Not Following the [Adherence] Club Rules Anymore
There is growing evidence that differentiated care models employed to manage treatment-experienced patients on antiretroviral therapy could improve adherence to medication and retention in care. We conducted a realist evaluation to determine how, why, for whom, and under what health system context the adherence club intervention works (or not) in real-life implementation. In the first phase, we developed an initial program theory of the adherence…
When you take pills you must eat’
South Africa has increasing numbers of persons living with HIV on antiretroviral treatment (ART). There is evidence for a relationship between food, food security and HIV. Despite increasing rates of people older than 50 living with HIV coinciding with greater levels of co-morbidity, the existing research is largely limited to those aged 15-49 years. In this paper, we therefore explore how older people living with HIV (OPLWH) in two urban communi…
Policymakers’ Perspectives Towards Developing a Guideline to Inform Policy on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) has a high prevalence in South Africa, especially among the poor socioeconomic communities. However, there is no specific policy to address FASD. Using a qualitative study design, we explored the perspectives of policymakers on guidelines/policies for FASD, current practices and interventions, and what practices and interventions could be included in a policy for FASD. The data analysis was done using the Fr…
Understanding factors influencing linkage to HIV care in a rural setting, Mbeya, Tanzania
Linkage to HIV care is an important step towards proper management of HIV. We found that access and linkage to care are influenced positively and negatively at all levels, however, the individual-level and health system-level factors were most prominent in this setting. Interventions must address issues around stigma, denial and inadequate awareness of the value of early linkage to care, and improve the capacity of HIV treatment/care clinics to i…
Unspoken inequality
An estimated 2 million foreign-born migrants of working age (15–64) were living in South Africa (SA) in 2017. Structural and practical xenophobia has driven asylum-seekers, refugees, and undocumented migrants in SA to abject poverty and misery. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) containment measures adopted by the SA government through the lockdown of the nation have tremendously deepened the unequal treatment of asylum-seekers and refugees …
Are asylum seekers, refugees and foreign migrants considered in the Covid-19 vaccine discourse
There is a propitious belief that a potent \nvaccine against the SARS-COV-2 virus is a \npanacea for the COVID-19 pandemic. The \nneed for a potent vaccine is heightened as \nmany nations are finding it counterproductive to sustain national lockdowns and individuals are becoming complacent with their \nhygiene and social (physical) distancing \npractices. Currently, there are more than 100 \nCOVID-19 vaccine candidates under development, with a n…
Applying Qualitative Methods to Investigate Social Actions for Justice Using Social Media
Social media is becoming a valuable resource for hosting activism as illustrated in the rise of the hashtag movements, such as #MeToo and #Endrapeculture, used to speak out against rape culture. In this article, we discuss the use of social media as the source and object of research, using the case of the 2016 South African #nakedprotest. We used naturalistic observation on Facebook comment threads and followed these up with online Facebook focus…
Leveraging the Photovoice Methodology for Critical Realist Theorizing
Photovoice is a visual research methodology that integrates images and words to encourage the exploration of the experiences, perceptions, and meaning-making processes of individuals on various social phenomena. As a participatory qualitative methodology, Photovoice has been used within the interpretivist paradigm to explore various [public] health and social phenomena to enhance participants' (co-investigators') engagement and to lobby for polic…
Using the realist interview approach to maintain theoretical awareness in realist studies
Realist evaluation submits that theories and models of how, why, for whom and under what circumstances programs work could be formulated by conceptualizing the relational links between the context within which programs are implemented, the generative mechanisms the programs trigger, and the outcomes of interest. Qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis allow for the description of the relevant context, the generative mechanisms, …
Policy Requirements for the Prevention and Management of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in South Africa
This policy brief is aimed to guide policymakers in developing a comprehensive and multi-sectoral policy for the prevention and management of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). FASD is a leading source of non-genetic developmental and intellectual disability globally and is usually associated with primary and secondary disabilities. South Africa has been identified to have the highest reported prevalence of FASD in the world. Nevertheless, e…
Perspectives of Policymakers and Service Providers on Why Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Remain Unabated in South Africa
Is the routine health information system ready to support the planned national health insurance scheme in South Africa
Implementation of a National Health Insurance (NHI) in South Africa requires a reliable, standardized health information system that supports Diagnosis-Related Groupers for reimbursements and resource management. We assessed the quality of inpatient health records, the availability of standard discharge summaries and coded clinical data and the congruence between inpatient health records and discharge summaries in public-sector hospitals to suppo…
Retroductive Theorizing
Mixed methods studies in social sciences are predominantly employed to explore broad, complex, and multifaceted issues and to evaluate policies and interventions. The integration of qualitative and quantitative methods in social sciences most often follows the Peircean pragmatic approach—abductive hypothesis formation followed by deductive and inductive testing/confirmation—with limited theorizing properties. This paper contributes to the field o…
Examining the Application of Retroductive Theorizing in Realist-Informed Studies
Introduction: Transcendental realism, the philosophical perspective dealing with the existence of causal powers governed by universal laws of nature, provides a useful framework for research conducted in the social sciences, including the field of health policy and systems research. Transcendental realism has been criticized, however, for offering weak methodological guidance for conducting research. Consequently, realist-informed studies are dee…
You Have to Withstand That Because You Have Come for What You Have Come for
Nationwide rollout of antiretroviral treatment (ART) is increasing the number of older persons living with HIV (OPLWH) in South Africa. Yet, little is known about how the sociological aspects of ageing - stigma, finances and family dynamics - impact access to ART. Qualitative interviews with 23 persons aged 50-plus living near Cape Town highlight the barriers and facilitators to the acceptability, affordability and availability of ART access amon…
Unpacking the design, implementation and uptake of community-integrated health care services
INTRODUCTION: Community-integrated care initiatives are increasingly being used for social and health service delivery and show promising outcomes. Nevertheless, it is unclear what structures and underlining causal agents (generative mechanisms) are responsible for explaining how and why they work or not. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Critical realist synthesis, a theory-driven approach to reviewing and synthesising literature based on the critical reali…
Psychosocial Support Programme Improves Adherence and Health Systems Experiences for Adolescents on Antiretroviral Therapy in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa
(1) Background: Psychosocial support (PSS) plays a significant role in persistent adherence to and retention in antiretroviral therapy (ART) for adolescents living with the human immunodeficiency virus (ALHIV). This paper qualitatively explores the experiences of ALHIV on ART, who participated in a PSS programme in five public primary healthcare facilities in Mpumalanga Province in South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) Methods: Data were…
Linkage to HIV Care and Early Retention in Care Rates in the Universal Test-and-Treat Era
HIV linkage, and retention are key weaknesses in South Africa's national antiretroviral therapy (ART) program, with the greatest loss of patients in the HIV treatment pathway occurring before ART initiation. This study investigated linkage-to and early-retention-in-care (LTRIC) rates among adults newly diagnosed with HIV in a high-HIV prevalent rural district. We conducted an observational prospective cohort study to investigate LTRIC rates for a…
Formulating Initial Programme Theories of the Healthy Homes and Neighbourhoods Integrated Care Initiative
The programme theories unveil that integrated care initiatives should foster positive relationships at all levels to ensure favourable consumer outcomes
Understanding for whom, how and why Sydney Local Health District’s integrated response was effective in addressing Covid-19
The International Journal of Integrated Care (IJIC) is an online, open-access, peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes original articles in the field of integrated care on a continuous basis.IJIC has an Impact Factor of 5.120 (2020 JCR, received in June 2021)The IJIC 20th Anniversary Issue was published in 2021
Understanding for whom, how and why Sydney Local Health District’s Integrated Response was Effective in Addressing Covid-19
The SLHD's progress towards a 'whole of health' approach, empowered and enabled the district to effectively work within and across sectors to address the pandemic in a people-centred manner. Sustaining the contextual conditions and mechanisms, that facilitated effective integration, will be beneficial beyond the pandemic
Comparing Patients' Experiences in Three Differentiated Service Delivery Models for HIV Treatment in South Africa
Differentiated service delivery for HIV treatment seeks to enhance medication adherence while respecting the preferences of people living with HIV. Nevertheless, patients' experiences of using these differentiated service delivery models or approaches have not been qualitatively compared. Underpinned by the tenets of descriptive phenomenology, we explored and compared the experiences of patients in three differentiated service delivery models usi…
Medicine (34 works) · Qualitative research (26 works) · Sociology (26 works) · Political science (21 works) · Health care (19 works) · Psychology (18 works) · Family medicine (17 works) · Nursing (16 works) · Environmental health (14 works) · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions (14 works)