College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Harar, Ethiopia.
Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts.
Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2022 Dec 12;108(1):124-136. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.22-0349. Print 2023 Jan 11.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had serious negative health and economic impacts in sub-Saharan Africa. Continuous monitoring of these impacts is crucial to formulate interventions to minimize the consequences of COVID-19. This study surveyed 2,829 adults in urban and rural sites among five sub-Saharan African countries: Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Ghana. Participants completed a mobile phone survey that assessed self-reported sociodemographics, COVID-19 preventive practices, psychological distress, and barriers to healthcare access. A modified Poisson regression model was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) and 95% CIs to investigate potential factors related to psychological distress and barriers to reduced healthcare access. At least 15.6% of adults reported experiencing any psychological distress in the previous 2 weeks, and 10.5% reported that at least one essential healthcare service was difficult to access 2 years into the pandemic. The majority of participants reported using several COVID-19 preventive methods, with varying proportions across the sites. Participants in the urban site of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (aPR: 2.29; 95% CI: 1.74-3.03) and in the rural site of Kintampo, Ghana (aPR: 1.68; 95% CI: 1.21-2.34) had a higher likelihood of experiencing any psychological distress compared with those in the rural area of Nouna, Burkina Faso. Loss of employment due to COVID-19 (aPR: 1.77; 95% CI: 1.47-2.11) was also associated with an increased prevalence of psychological distress. The number of children under 5 years in the household (aPR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.14-1.33) and participant self-reported psychological distress (aPR: 1.83; 95% CI: 1.48-2.27) were associated with an increased prevalence of reporting barriers to accessing health services, whereas wage employment (aPR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.49-0.90) was associated with decreased prevalence of reporting barriers to accessing health services. Overall, we found a high prevalence of psychological distress and interruptions in access to healthcare services 2 years into the pandemic across five sub-Saharan African countries. Increased effort and attention should be given to addressing the negative impacts of COVID-19 on psychological distress. An equitable and collaborative approach to new and existing preventive measures for COVID-19 is crucial to limit the consequences of COVID-19 on the health of adults in sub-Saharan Africa.
撒哈拉以南非洲地区的 COVID-19 大流行对健康和经济造成了严重的负面影响。持续监测这些影响对于制定干预措施以最小化 COVID-19 的后果至关重要。本研究在撒哈拉以南非洲的五个国家(布基纳法索、埃塞俄比亚、尼日利亚、坦桑尼亚和加纳)的城市和农村地区调查了 2829 名成年人。参与者完成了一项手机调查,评估了自我报告的社会人口统计学、COVID-19 预防措施、心理困扰和获得医疗保健的障碍。使用修正泊松回归模型估计调整后的患病率比 (aPR) 和 95%CI,以调查与心理困扰和减少获得医疗保健服务的障碍相关的潜在因素。至少有 15.6%的成年人报告在过去 2 周内经历过任何心理困扰,10.5%的成年人报告至少有一项基本医疗服务在大流行 2 年后难以获得。大多数参与者报告使用了几种 COVID-19 预防方法,但在不同地点的使用比例不同。与布基纳法索努纳农村地区的参与者相比,来自布基纳法索瓦加杜古城市地区(aPR:2.29;95%CI:1.74-3.03)和加纳金坦波农村地区(aPR:1.68;95%CI:1.21-2.34)的参与者更有可能经历任何心理困扰。因 COVID-19 而失业(aPR:1.77;95%CI:1.47-2.11)也与心理困扰的患病率增加相关。家庭中 5 岁以下儿童的数量(aPR:1.23;95%CI:1.14-1.33)和参与者自我报告的心理困扰(aPR:1.83;95%CI:1.48-2.27)与报告获得卫生服务障碍的患病率增加相关,而工资就业(aPR:0.67;95%CI:0.49-0.90)与报告获得卫生服务障碍的患病率降低相关。总体而言,我们发现五个撒哈拉以南非洲国家在大流行两年后,心理困扰和获得医疗服务的障碍的发生率仍然很高。应该加大力度和关注,以解决 COVID-19 对心理困扰的负面影响。采取新的和现有的 COVID-19 预防措施,以公平和协作的方式,对于限制 COVID-19 对撒哈拉以南非洲成年人健康的影响至关重要。