Interventions to improve providers' ability to diagnose and treat uncomplicated Malaria
Literature review from the REACT studies
Category: Intervention Manuals
Sub Category: Intervention Manuals
Author: Lindsay Mangham-Jefferies
Published Date: 15 February 2010
Description
Prompt access to effective malaria treatment is important, and many individuals rely on providers to diagnose malaria and dispense the recommended treatment.
Whether the emphasis is on presumptive or parasitological diagnosis, ensuring that providers are able to supply treatment in line with national guidelines is critical for patient care. There are, however, longstanding problems with the care available at many public health facilities and private sector outlets.
Given these problems and the recent interest in the use of RDTs, there is a need for interventions that improve the ability and practice of providers to treat patients that present at a health facility with a fever.
This literature review examines the evidence available on interventions to improve providers’ ability to diagnose or treat uncomplicated malaria.
Publications since 1990 were eligible if they met all of the following inclusion criteria:
- The intervention was intended to improve providers’ ability to diagnose or treat uncomplicated malaria.
- The population exposed to the intervention are providers.
- The study design included a comparison group.
- The effect was reported on a malaria-related outcome.
- The study setting was an area of endemic malaria transmission in sub-Saharan Africa or Asia.