Publications by authors named "Sarah Louart"

Acceptability is a key concept used to analyze the introduction of a health innovation in a specific setting. However, there seems to be a lack of clarity in this notion, both conceptually and practically. In low and middle-income countries, programs to support the diffusion of new technological tools are multiplying.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The AIRE operational project will evaluate the implementation of the routine Pulse Oximeter (PO) use in the integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI) strategy for children under-5 in primary health care centers (PHC) in West Africa. The introduction of PO should promote the accurate identification of hypoxemia (pulse blood oxygen saturation Sp02 < 90%) among all severe IMCI cases (respiratory and non-respiratory) to prompt their effective case management (oxygen, antibiotics and other required treatments) at hospital. We seek to understand how the routine use of PO integrated in IMCI outpatients works (or not), for whom, in what contexts and with what outcomes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The indigents have long been excluded from health policies in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite recent efforts by some countries to allow them free access to health services, they face a multitude of non-financial barriers that prevent them from accessing care. Interventions to address the multiple patient-level barriers to care, such as patient navigation interventions, could help reverse this trend.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Patient navigation interventions have become common in high-income countries since the 1990s to help patients access healthcare, but low-income countries (LICs) still struggle to include impoverished individuals in health policies despite the goal of universal health coverage.
  • A scoping review identified 60 articles detailing 48 patient navigation interventions in LICs, primarily benefiting groups like people with HIV, pregnant women, and children but generally overlooking the poorest populations.
  • While the evaluations of these interventions show positive outcomes in health indicators and service utilization, there’s an urgent need to develop and test navigation strategies specifically aimed at helping indigents overcome their unique barriers to accessing care.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF