Biomedical subjects

Zelee Hill

Publications and source records attributed to Zelee Hill.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

"Nothing new": responses to the introduction of antiretroviral drugs in South Africa.

Interviews conducted in South Africa found that awareness of antiretroviral therapy was generally poor. Antiretroviral drugs were not perceived as new, but one of many alternative therapies for HIV/AIDS. Respondents had more detailed knowledge of indications, effects and how to access alternative treatments, which is bolstered by the active promotion and legitimization of alternative treatments. Many expressed a lack of excitement about the introduction of antiretroviral therapy, and little change in their attitudes concerning the epidemic.

Anti-Retroviral Agents↗

PubMed2004

Reducing attrition in panel studies in developing countries.

BACKGROUND: Panel studies offer repeated observations of individuals over time, but the mobility of populations in the developing world often causes attrition in panel studies. Such attrition can cause bias if it is selective but can be reduced by tracking respondents. Tracking in developing countries can be costly and difficult as populations are often highly mobile, infrastructure is poor, structures frequently change, and formal address systems or population records rarely exist. Method In this paper, the attrition and tracking experiences of panel studies in developing countries are reviewed and recommendations made for ensuring effective tracking. Comments Tracking can reduce attrition by up to 45% and is feasible if procedures are locally appropriate, well planned, involve the community, collect as much locating data as possible, and have explicit criteria, and if tracking is done at regular intervals, and interviewers are well trained, supervised, and motivated. CONCLUSION: Attrition is an important issue in panel studies, whilst tracking can be costly it can reduce attrition if effective procedures are used.

Bias↗

PubMed2003

Recognizing childhood illnesses and their traditional explanations: exploring options for care-seeking interventions in the context of the IMCI strategy in rural Ghana.

OBJECTIVES: Interventions that promote appropriate care-seeking for severely ill children have the potential to substantially reduce child mortality in developing countries, but little is known about the best approach to address the issue. This paper explores the relative importance of illness recognition as a barrier to care-seeking and the feasibility and potential impact of improving recognition. METHODS: The study combined qualitative and quantitative methods including in-depth interviews exploring the local illness classification system, a Rapid Anthropological Assessment (RAA) recording narratives of recent episodes of child illness and a survey designed to test the hypotheses that emerged from the RAA. RESULTS: Several danger symptoms were not recognized by caregivers. There were recognition problems which may not be feasibly addressed in an intervention. Other significant care-seeking barriers included classifying certain illnesses as 'not-for-hospital' and untreatable by modern medicine; problems of access; and frequent use of traditional medicines. CONCLUSION: The recognition component of any care-seeking intervention should identify the type of recognition problem present in the community. Many of the care-seeking barriers identified in the study revolved around the local illness classification system, which should be explored and built on as part of any care-seeking intervention.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Patterns of adherence to antiretrovirals: why adherence has no simple measure.

The goal of this study was to explore patterns and explanations of adherence to antiretroviral therapies from the patient's perspective. It consisted of 78 in-depth interviews with patients attending an HIV clinic in New Orleans, Louisiana, to whom combination therapy had been prescribed. Interviews explored patient's definitions of adherence, beliefs about consequences of nonadherence, reasons for current and past adherence behavior, and contextual issues such as drug and alcohol use and social support. Respondents reported nine distinct patterns of adherence, which they perceived to have different consequences and causes. These patterns hid variations because respondents could have more than one pattern simultaneously and patterns were not stable over time. Although there are gold standards for adherence measurement, such as directly observed therapy, these measurements are most frequently used to classify respondents as adherers or nonadherers based on whether they take a certain percentage of their medication. Such a categorization is simplistic and does not reflect the complexity of adherence patterns.

Anti-HIV Agents↗