School of Management, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, P.R. China.
Department of Public Administration, Law School/ Institute of Local Government Development, Shantou University, Shantou, China.
Inquiry. 2022 Jan-Dec;59:469580221092830. doi: 10.1177/00469580221092830.
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the suffering of persons with chronic health conditions due to the increased demand for healthcare services in the pandemic. Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has become a key determinant of how health systems function, with most existing health conditions being given less attention. This study focused on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on persons with chronic diseases in four Anglophone West African countries (Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone) using in-depth interviews of a qualitative method to collect data from key stakeholders in chronic disease issues. The finding shows that COVID-19 caused fear, anxiety, and affected planned health delivery and resource location to interventions designed for chronic disease patients. The study also suggested training, improved technology in health delivery, increased resource location, and factoring persons with chronic health conditions into emergency health decision-making to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and other future pandemics on persons with chronic health conditions.
COVID-19 大流行增加了患有慢性健康状况人群的痛苦，因为大流行期间对医疗保健服务的需求增加。在全球范围内，COVID-19 大流行已成为影响卫生系统运作的关键因素，大多数现有健康状况受到的关注较少。本研究使用深入访谈的定性方法，重点关注 COVID-19 大流行对四个英语西非国家（加纳、利比里亚、尼日利亚和塞拉利昂）的慢性疾病患者的影响，从慢性病问题的利益相关者那里收集数据。研究结果表明，COVID-19 引起了恐惧、焦虑，并影响了计划中的医疗服务提供和资源定位，从而影响了为慢性疾病患者设计的干预措施。该研究还建议进行培训，改进医疗服务技术，增加资源定位，并将慢性健康状况患者纳入紧急卫生决策，以减轻 COVID-19 及其他未来大流行对慢性健康状况患者的影响。
