Geographic accessibility to childhood tuberculosis care in Pakistan

Bibliographic Data

ID19530341
AuthorsAashifa Yaqoob (0000-0002-5680-1507, University of Bergen, corresponding author), Muhammad Rizwan Alvi (Digital Security & Intelligence, Inbox Business Technologies, Islamabad, Pakistan), Razia Fatima (0000-0002-2340-6121, Research Unit, Common Management Unit [TB, HIV/AIDS & Malaria], Islamabad, Pakistan), Hina Najmi (0000-0001-9287-2380, Health Services Academy), Zia Samad (M & E and Surveillance, Common Management Unit (TB, HIV/AIDS & Malaria), Islamabad, Pakistan), Nadia Nisar (0000-0002-4107-6154, International Health Regulations Strengthening project, Public Health England, Islamabad, Pakistan), Anwar ul Haq (0000-0003-0637-2967, Government of Pakistan), Basharat Javed (0000-0002-9349-5406, M & E and Surveillance, Common Management Unit (TB, HIV/AIDS & Malaria), Islamabad, Pakistan), Abdul Wali Khan (0000-0003-1008-3973), Sven Gudmund Hinderaker (0000-0003-2725-0248, University of Bergen)
Year2022
Volume15
Issue1
Pages2095782-2095782
Publication date2022-12-31
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueGlobal Health Action (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1654-9716 • E-ISSN: 1654-9880
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/16549716.2022.2095782
PMID35848796
OpenAlexW4285728565
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited14

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) in children is difficult to detect and often needs specialists to diagnose; the health system is supposed to refer to higher level of health care when diagnosis is not settled in a sick child. In Pakistan, the primary health care level can usually not diagnose childhood TB and will refer to a paediatricians working at a secondary or tertiary care hospital. We aimed to determine the health services access to child TB services in Pakistan. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to determine the geographical access to child TB services in Pakistan. METHOD: We used geospatial analysis to calculate the distance from the nearest public health facility to settlements, using qGIS, as well as population living within the World Health Organization's (WHO) recommended 5-km distance. RESULT: At primary health care level, 14.1% of facilities report child TB cases to national tuberculosis program and 74% of the population had geographical access to general primary health care within 5-km radius. To secondary- and tertiary-level health care, 33.5% of the population had geographical access within 5-km radius. The average distance from a facility for diagnosis of childhood TB was 26.3 km from all settlement to the nearest child TB sites. The population of one province (Balochistan) had longer distances to health care services. CONCLUSION: With fairly good coverage of primary health care but lower coverage of specialist care for childhood TB, the health system depends heavily on a good referral system from the communities

Economic growth · Environmental health · Family medicine · Geography · Health care · Health facility · Health services · Population · Public health · Referral · Tuberculosis · Diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis · Healthcare Facilities Design and Sustainability · Medicine · Nursing · Tuberculosis Research and Epidemiology · Pediatrics