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A Systematic Review of Access to Rehabilitation for People with Disabilities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

ABSTRACT: Rehabilitation seeks to optimize functioning of people with impairments and includes a range of specific health services-diagnosis, treatment, surgery, assistive devices, and therapy. Evidence on access to rehabilitation services for people with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is limited. A systematic review was conducted to examine this in depth. In February 2017, six databases were searched for studies measuring access to rehabilitation among people with disabilities in LMICs. Eligible measures of access to rehabilitation included: use of assistive devices, use of specialist health services, and adherence to treatment. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts, and full texts. Data was extracted by one reviewer and checked by a second. Of 13,048 screened studies, 77 were eligible for inclusion. These covered a broad geographic area. 17% of studies measured access to hearing-specific services; 22% vision-specific; 31% physical impairment-specific; and 44% measured access to mental impairment-specific services. A further 35% measured access to services for any disability. A diverse range of measures of disability and access were used across studies making comparability difficult. However, there was some evidence that access to rehabilitation is low among people with disabilities. No clear patterns were seen in access by equity measures such as age, locality, socioeconomic status, or country income group due to the limited number of studies measuring these indicators, and the range of measures used. Access to rehabilitation services was highly variable and poorly measured within the studies in the review, but generally shown to be low. Far better metrics are needed, including through clinical assessment, before we have a true appreciation of the population level need for and coverage of these services.

SUBMITTER: Bright T

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6210163 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A Systematic Review of Access to Rehabilitation for People with Disabilities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Bright Tess T Wallace Sarah S Kuper Hannah H

International journal of environmental research and public health 20181002 10

Rehabilitation seeks to optimize functioning of people with impairments and includes a range of specific health services-diagnosis, treatment, surgery, assistive devices, and therapy. Evidence on access to rehabilitation services for people with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is limited. A systematic review was conducted to examine this in depth. In February 2017, six databases were searched for studies measuring access to rehabilitation among people with disabilities i ...[more]

PMID: 30279358

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Children with disabilities (CwDs) make up around 150 million of the billion people with disabilities in the world. The Sub-Saharan African countries have a large number of CwDs who have limited access to healthcare and rehabilitation care. This, combined with chronic poverty, low education, and inadequately trained healthcare professionals, substantially lowers these children's quality of life. The main objective of this scoping review was to discover the barriers and facilitators to healthcare access for CwDs in selected low to middle income Sub-Saharan African countries. As African countries significantly vary in socioeconomic status, we only focused on countries in Sub-Saharan Africa who allocated less than $50/person to healthcare. METHODS:A broad and iterative search strategy using multiple sources and databases including CINAHL, Medline, Global Health, and Embase were utilized. Using a comprehensive search strategy, 704 articles were generated. After removal of the duplicates, 466 of them were screened based on the study inclusion and exclusion criteria. After iterative reading and screening of these articles, a final 15 articles were included in this review. RESULTS:This scoping review shows that CwDs in the selected Sub-Saharan African countries face major barriers including stigma and negative attitudes, poverty and insufficient resources, inadequate policy implementations, physical inaccessibility, lack of transportation, lack of privacy, and inadequately trained healthcare professionals to deal with disability. Emotional and social support, including peer support for CwDs and caregivers, were identified as facilitators for better access to health services. CONCLUSIONS:There is limited access to healthcare services in the low and middle income Sub-Saharan African countries due to poverty, low education, inadequate healthcare systems, and shortage of healthcare professionals. It is evident that there are socioeconomic, cultural, and physical related impediments that affect CwDs' and their caregivers' access to the required healthcare services. Policy development, improved physical accessibility, public disability awareness, and parental support are some of the key facilitators to access healthcare services. The study highlights the importance of revisions to childhood disability and healthcare provisions policy and practice as well as sustainable rehabilitation programs. Further research is required to explore ways to improve experience of accessing health services.

Project description:IntroductionThe rising incidence of mental illness and its impact on individuals, families, and societies is becoming a major public health concern, especially in resource-constrained countries. Consequently, there is an increasing demand for mental health services in many middle- and low-income countries (LMIC). Challenges such as inequality in access, lack of staff and hospital beds, and underfunding, often present in the LMIC, might in part be addressed by telemental health services. However, little is known about telemental health in the LMIC.MethodsA systematic review was performed, drawing on several electronic databases, including PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Springer Link, and Google Scholar. Original English language studies on the practice of telemental health in LMIC, involving patients and published between 1 January 2000 and 16 February 2017, were included.ResultsNineteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Most of the articles were recent, which may reflect an increasing focus on telemental health in the LMIC. Eight of these studies were from Asia. Eight of the studies were interventional/randomized controlled trials, and 11 examined general mental health issues. Videoconferencing was the most frequently (6) studied telemental modality. Other modalities studied were online decision support systems (3), text messaging and bibliotherapy (1), e-chatting combined with videoconferencing (1), online therapy (2), e-counseling (1), store-and-forward technology (1), telephone follow-up (1), online discussion groups (1), audiovisual therapy and bibliotherapy (1), and computerized occupational therapy (1). Although many of the studies showed that telemental services had positive outcomes, some studies reported no postintervention improvements.ConclusionThe review shows a rising trend in telemental activity in the LMIC. There is a greater need for telemental health in the LMIC, but more research is needed on empirical and theoretical aspects of telemental activity in the LMIC and on direct comparisons between telemental activity in the LMIC and the non-LMIC.

Project description:BackgroundPromotion of physical activity (PA) among populations is a global health investment. However, evidence on economic aspects of PA is sparse and scattered in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs).ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to summarise the available evidence on economics of PA in LMICs, identify potential target variables for policy and report gaps in the existing economic evidence alongside research recommendations.Data sourcesA systematic review of the electronic databases (Scopus, Web of Science and SPORTDiscus) and grey literature.Study eligibility criteriaCost-of-illness studies, economic evaluations, interventions and descriptive studies on economic factors associated with PA using preset eligibility criteria.Study appraisal and synthesis of methodsScreening, study selection and quality appraisal based on standard checklists performed by two reviewers with consensus of a third reviewer. Descriptive synthesis of data was performed.ResultsThe majority of the studies were from upper-middle-income countries (n=16, 88.8%) and mainly from Brazil (n=9, 50%). Only one economic evaluation study was found. The focus of the reviewed literature spanned the economic burden of physical inactivity (n=4, 22%), relationship between PA and costs (n=6, 46%) and socioeconomic determinants of PA (n=7, 39%). The findings showed a considerable economic burden due to insufficient PA, with LMICs accounting for 75% of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) globally due to insufficient PA. Socioeconomic correlates of PA were identified, and inverse relationship of PA with the cost of chronic diseases was established. Regular PA along with drug treatment as a treatment scheme for chronic diseases showed advantages with a cost-utility ratio of US$3.21/quality-adjusted life year (QALY) compared with the drug treatment-only group (US$3.92/QALY) by the only economic evaluation conducted in the LMIC, Brazil.LimitationsMeta-analysis was not performed due to heterogeneity of the studies.Conclusions and recommendationsEconomic evaluation studies for PA promotion interventions/strategies and local research from low-income countries are grossly inadequate. Setting economic research agenda in LMICs ought to be prioritised in those areas.Prospero registration numberCRD42018099856.

Dataset Information

A Systematic Review of Access to Rehabilitation for People with Disabilities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Publications

A Systematic Review of Access to Rehabilitation for People with Disabilities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

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