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Training Lay Healthcare Workers to Optimize TB Care and Improve Outcomes in Malawi

NCT02533089 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 1153

Last updated 2020-03-24

Study results available
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Summary

Task shifting of less complex healthcare tasks to lay health workers (LHWs) is increasingly employed strategy to address the global shortage of skilled health workers. Despite availability of effective treatment, tuberculosis (TB) remains an important cause of mortality with 1.3 million lives lost globally to TB in 2012. The greatest proportion of new TB cases occurs in Africa and over 95% of TB deaths occur in low income countries (LICs). In response to the combined high TB burden and severe healthcare worker shortages in these settings, outpatient TB care is among the tasks commonly shifted to LHWs.

LHWs are community members who have received some training but are not healthcare professionals. Randomised trials show LHWs improve access to basic health services and TB treatment outcomes, however, insufficient training and supervision are recognized barriers to their effectiveness.

The investigators' goal is to improve TB care provided by LHWs in Malawi by implementing and evaluating a knowledge translation (KT) strategy designed to facilitate incorporation of evidence into LHW practice. The investigators will employ a mixed methods design including a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial to evaluate effectiveness of the strategy and qualitative methods to understand barriers and facilitators to scalability and sustainability of the program.

Conditions

Interventions

OTHER

KT intervention

Multifaceted KT intervention employing peer-trainer led educational outreach, a point of care reminder tool, and a peer mentoring network.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Unity Health Toronto

    collaborator OTHER

  • Dignitas International

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Lisa M Puchalski Ritchie, MD,PhD · Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2016-05-31
Primary Completion
2018-02-28
Completion
2018-02-28

Countries

  • Malawi

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Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT02533089 on ClinicalTrials.gov