Publications by authors named "Cintia Spira"
Background: Approximately 81% of deaths in Argentina are from chronic non-communicable diseases and 21% caused by cancer. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most frequent cancer in Argentina. Even though CRC screening has been recommended for adults from 50 to 75 years old by using a faecal immunochemical test (FIT) annually, screening rates remain below 20% in the country.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The patients' guide by the Batz Patient Safety Foundation promotes patients' active participation in healthcare and a safe hospital experience.
Objective: The aim was to adapt the Spanish version of the guide to the local context and evaluate its acceptability from healthcare professionals' and patients' perspectives in two hospitals in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Methods: This implementation study had a formative research phase to adapt the guide with input from individual interviews and focus group discussions.
Although obesity and non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention efforts to-date have focused mainly on individual level factors, the social and physical environments in which people live are now widely recognized as important social determinants of health. Obesogenic environments promote higher dietary energy intakes and sedentary behaviors, thus contributing to the obesity/NCD burden. To develop quality indicators (QIs) for measuring food and physical activity (PA)-built environments in municipalities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Despite international recommendations, coverage of syphilis testing in pregnant women and treatment of those found seropositive remains limited in sub-Saharan Africa. We assessed whether combining the provision of supplies with a behavioural intervention was more effective than providing supplies only, to improve syphilis screening and treatment during antenatal care.
Methods: In this 18-month, cluster randomised controlled trial, we randomly assigned (1:1) 26 urban antenatal care clinics in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Lusaka, Zambia, to receive a behavioural intervention (opinion leader selection, academic detailing visits, reminders, audits and feedback, and supportive supervision) plus supplies for syphilis testing and treatment (intervention group) or to receive supplies only (control group).
Objective: To assess whether the implementation of a package of activities through the joint action of three international healthcare professional associations (HCPAs) increased the use of essential interventions (EIs) for delivery and neonatal care.
Methods: A noncontrolled pre-intervention versus post-intervention study was conducted from June 13 to December 13, 2016, among women older than 18 years of age, who had delivered at one of two urban tertiary hospitals in Nepal.
Results: The study included 9252 women.
Background: Re-use of medical devices labeled and marketed for single use only is a current practice around the world.
Objectives: To estimate the average difference per surgery in device-related costs (DRCs) when performed with single-use devices under a single-use policy (SUP) instead of a re-use policy (RP) from the perspective of the private health sector of Argentina.
Methods: An analytical model was developed in Microsoft Excel and populated with data from a literature review, a Delphi-like panel, and local cost estimations.
Objective: To assess whether the implementation of a package of activities through the joint action of the three international healthcare professionals associations (HCPAs) increased the use of intrapartum and postnatal essential interventions (EIs) in two hospitals in Uganda.
Methods: A non-controlled before-and-after study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of a package of activities designed to change practice relating to nine EIs among providers. Coverage of the EIs was measured in a 3-month pre-implementation period and a 3-month post-implementation period in 2014.