Barriers and enablers to and strategies for promoting domestic plasma donation throughout the world: Overarching protocol for three systematic reviews

by Cole Etherington, Amelia Palumbo, Kelly Holloway, Samantha Meyer, Maximillian Labrecque, Kyle Rubini, Risa Shorr, Vivian Welch, Emily Gibson, Terrie Foster, Jennie Haw, Elisabeth Vesnaver, Manavi T. Maharshi, Sheila F. O’Brien, Paul MacPherson, Joyce Dogba, Tony Steed, Mindy Goldman, Justin Presseau

Introduction

The growing demand for plasma protein products has caused concern in many countries who largely rely on importing plasma products produced from plasma collected in the United States and Europe. Optimizing recruitment and retention of a diversity of plasma donors is therefore important for supporting national donation systems that can reliably meet the most critical needs of health services. This series of three systematic reviews aims to synthesize the known barriers and enablers to source plasma donation from the qualitative and survey-based literature and identify which strategies that have shown to be effective in promoting increased intention to, and actual donation of, source plasma.

Methods and analysis

Primary studies involving source or convalescent plasma donation via plasmapheresis will be included. The search strategy will capture all potentially relevant studies to each of the three reviews, creating a database of plasma donation literature. Study designs will be subsequently identified in the screening process to facilitate analysis according to the unique inclusion criteria of each review (i.e., qualitative, survey, and experimental designs). The search will be conducted in the electronic databases SCOPUS, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL without date or language restrictions. Studies will be screened, and data will be extracted, in duplicate by two independent reviewers with disagreements resolved through consensus. Reviews 1 and 2 will draw on the Theoretical Domains Framework and Intersectionality, while Review 3 will be informed by Behaviour Change Intervention Ontologies. Directed content analysis and framework analysis (Review 1), and descriptive and inferential syntheses (Reviews 2 and 3), will be used, including meta-analyses if appropriate.

Discussion

This series of related reviews will serve to provide a foundation of what is known from the published literature about barriers and enablers to, and strategies for promoting, plasma donation worldwide.

Predictors of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in a teaching hospital in Ghana: A case-control study

by Philomina Afful, Godwin Adjei Vechey, Peter Kipo Leta, Foster Bediako Gbafu, Fortress Yayra Aku

Multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) remains a global health concern. The disease results in a prolonged treatment and hence, poses a financial burden to affected individuals and their families. The Ghana National TB Control Programme (NTP) has made extensive efforts to control the menace, however, it remains a concern. This study, therefore, aimed to determine the predictors of multidrug-resistant TB in the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital of Ghana. An unmatched case-control study involving 37 cases and 111 controls was conducted using data of TB cases registered for treatment between January 2018 and December 2020 at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital. Socio-demographic, individual level and social characteristics information were collected from respondents through telephone surveys, face-to-face interviews and review of records using a structured questionnaire built in the Kobo Collect Toolbox. The data was exported to Stata version 16.0 for analysis. Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were used to determine the predictors of MDR-TB. Associations were considered statistically significant at a 95% confidence interval with a p-value of less than 0.05. The results revealed that the majority (25 [67.6%]) of MDR-TB cases and controls (76 [68.5%]) were aged 30 years and above with a median age of 36.5 (IQR: 28–50) years for all respondents, while 20 (54.1%) of MDR-TB cases and 33 (29.7%) of controls lived in households with one room residences for their families. The following predictors for MDR-TB were identified: BCG vaccination status (AOR = 0.17,95% CI:0.07–0.45), long distance to health facility (AOR = 4.11, 95% CI: 1.55–10.87), number of rooms in residence (AOR = 0.37,95% CI: 0.14–0.99) and first place of visit upon noticing TB symptom (AOR = 4.22,95% CI:1.31–13.64). Predictors of MDR-TB in the current study were multi-faceted. Measures to control MDR-TB should target socio-demographic, health-seeking behaviour and social-related concerns.

Towards a community-driven definition of community wellbeing: A qualitative study of residents

by Camilla Michalski, Apira Ragunathan, Adrian Foster, Lief Pagalan, Casey Chu, Lori M. Diemert, John F. Helliwell, Diana Urajnik, Ruth Speidel, Tina Malti, Dianne Fierheller, Laura Fusca, Ian Zenlea, Scott McKean, Laura C. Rosella

Background

Understanding what promotes or hinders a community’s capacity to serve the priorities of its residents is essential for the alignment of citizen needs and governance. Participatory approaches that engage community residents on the topic of community wellbeing are useful methods for defining outcomes that reflect a community’s goals and priorities. Using qualitative focus group methods, the aim of this study was to outline bottom-up definitions of community wellbeing from a diverse pool of community residents in Ontario, Canada.

Methods

Semi-structured, two-hour group interviews were conducted with adult (≥18 years) participants (N = 15) residing in four communities across Canada’s largest province of Ontario. Participants were purposively selected from a pool of screening questionnaires to ensure diverse group compositions based on race, gender, age, and educational attainment. Interviews were thematically analysed using descriptive and interpretive methods to characterize resident conceptions of community wellbeing.

Results

Focus group participants were between 18 and 75 years of age and most had lived in their local community for 5 or more years. Four major themes emerged: (1) a sense of community belonging is cultivated through shared spaces, routines, support, and identities; (2) a community constitutes the amenities and social contexts that enable residents to thrive; (3) effective regional decision-making must be community-informed; and (4) the wellbeing of a community relies on equal opportunities for engagement and participation.

Conclusions

Residents described their communities and their associated wellbeing as a combination of accessible amenities and opportunities to engage without marginalization. This study underscores the value of participatory approaches in community wellbeing research, where the viewpoint and life experience of residents is used to inform local decision-making and service delivery. Future research will capture more diverse perspectives towards community belonging, particularly from community newcomers, for the development of regionally appropriate indicators of community wellbeing.