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Community-Based Chronic Disease Care in Rural Lesotho

NCT05596773 · Status: RECRUITING · Type: OBSERVATIONAL · Enrollment: 17500

Last updated 2026-02-13

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

This ComBaCaL cohort study is to assess the impact of community-based, lay-led chronic disease screening and care interventions in rural Lesotho. It aims to establish a prospective research and service delivery platform in rural Lesotho that is managed by eHealth-supported Chronic Care Village Health Worker (CC-VHWs) providing regular chronic disease screening, monitoring and referral services. The implementation outcomes of the cohort as well as the effect of the cohort activities on disease-specific care cascades will be assessed. Subsequently, nested trials to assess the effectiveness of specific chronic disease control interventions will be developed. Measurements and data entry will be conducted by CC-VHWs. The CC-VHWs will be equipped with the essential tools required for chronic disease monitoring in the community (i.e. BP machines, scales, measuring band, glucometers, and urine dipsticks). They will undergo a theoretical and practical training covering all aspects required for correct data collection and chronic disease screening, diagnosing, referral and counselling services. At every visit, the CC-VHW will screen participants for warning signs and symptoms (i.e. shortness of breath, severe headache, chest pain, new-onset confusion, impaired consciousness, severely impaired general state of health) and refer participants to the closest health centre in case of any danger-sign. The CC-VHWs will be continuously monitored and supervised by health centre nurses of the respective village's catchment area, mainly through direct interaction during monthly VHW meetings and by CC nurses through field visits, remote interaction via phone calls or messages sent via the ComBaCaL app and through direct contact during the monthly VHW meetings at the health centre. The CC-VHWs are embedded within the Lesotho MoH VHW program and may during the project period be trained and equipped to provide further routine services in their communities.

Conditions

  • Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs)

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • World Diabetes Foundation (WDF)

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • SolidarMed

    collaborator OTHER

  • University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Niklaus Labhardt, Prof. Dr. med. · Division of Clinical Epidemiology, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel

  • Alain Amstutz, MD · Division of Clinical Epidemiology, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel

Eligibility

Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2023-02-22
Primary Completion
2027-12-31
Completion
2027-12-31

Countries

  • Lesotho
  • Switzerland

Study Locations

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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 NCT05596773 on ClinicalTrials.gov