Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Social Development and Health Promotion Research Center, Health Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran.
Harm Reduct J. 2024 Jul 12;21(1):133. doi: 10.1186/s12954-024-01049-z.
The COVID-19 pandemic posed significant challenges for managers overseeing women's harm reduction centers. This study seeks to capture managers' perspectives on the service providing in women's harm reduction centers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This convergent mixed-method study conducted in three provinces of Iran: Tehran, Khuzestan, and Kermanshah. The study was carried out between January and May 2023. In the quantitative part, the researchers utilized reports from 10 center managers. A researcher-designed questionnaire was employed to collect data on a wide range of services and referrals provided by the centers. The qualitative part of the research involved conventional content analysis and included 12 individual interviews. Two directors from the Ministry of Health and ten managers of women's harm reduction centers participated in the interviews. During the interpretation phase, the researchers compared the quantitative and qualitative findings to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the topic.
During the quantitative stage of the study, it was observed that all the managers were women, with an average age of 40.7 ± 7 years. More than half of the managers had obtained a postgraduate education (n = 6, 60%), and a majority of them were married (n = 7, 70%). Additionally, 40% of the managers (n = 4) were working as contractors. During the non-COVID-19 period, there were higher coverage by centers and residents, more referrals of non-injecting drug users and sex workers, and a higher number of group counseling sessions in all three provinces compared to the COVID-19 period. The qualitative analysis revealed two primary themes: "challenges" and "capabilities."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, providing some services and client referrals decreased in the centers, and center managers faced increased challenges. Many of these challenges were in the communication, executive, management, structure, education, financial, civilization, facilities, and socio-cultural sectors. Managers used their skills to manage and control these challenges. It is important to focus on these challenges and managerial capabilities to effectively handle future crises.
COVID-19 大流行给负责监督妇女减少伤害中心的管理人员带来了重大挑战。本研究旨在捕捉管理人员在 COVID-19 大流行期间对妇女减少伤害中心提供服务的看法。
这是一项在伊朗三个省份（德黑兰、胡齐斯坦和克尔曼沙阿）进行的收敛混合方法研究。研究于 2023 年 1 月至 5 月进行。在定量部分，研究人员利用了 10 名中心经理的报告。研究人员设计了一份问卷，收集中心提供的各种服务和转介数据。研究的定性部分涉及常规内容分析，包括 12 次个人访谈。卫生部的两名主任和 10 名妇女减少伤害中心的管理人员参加了访谈。在解释阶段，研究人员比较了定量和定性的研究结果，以全面了解主题。
在研究的定量阶段，观察到所有经理都是女性，平均年龄为 40.7±7 岁。超过一半的经理获得了研究生教育（n=6，60%），大多数已婚（n=7，70%）。此外，40%的经理（n=4）为承包商。在非 COVID-19 期间，与 COVID-19 期间相比，所有三个省份的中心和居民的覆盖率更高，非注射吸毒者和性工作者的转介更多，小组咨询次数也更多。定性分析揭示了两个主要主题：“挑战”和“能力”。
在 COVID-19 大流行期间，中心提供的一些服务和客户转介减少，中心经理面临更多挑战。这些挑战大多存在于沟通、行政、管理、结构、教育、财务、文明、设施和社会文化领域。经理们利用自己的技能来管理和控制这些挑战。关注这些挑战和管理能力对于有效应对未来的危机非常重要。
