RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Malawi, like many low-income countries, is facing a severe health worker shortage. A potential stop-gap solution to this crisis is improving the efficiency of health center operations. Given the lack of research on center efficiency in rural health centers in Malawi, we conducted a study to identify deficiencies in center organization and barriers to patient flow. METHODS: We performed a time-motion survey at a rural health center in Ntaja, Malawi over a period of 1 week. We used a standardized questionnaire to collect information on the amount of time a patient spent with each health worker, the number of center staff that attended to each patient, and the total time spent at the center. Additionally, at the end of the visit, we conducted an exit survey to collect demographic information and data on perception of quality of care with the center visit for all patients. RESULTS: A total of 1018 patients were seen over the five-day study. The average total time spent at the center by the patients was 123 min (2-366 min). Adults had an average total time spent at the center of 111 min (2-366 min) and children 134 min (7-365 min). Patient waiting time (PWT) was higher in the early morning hours ranging from 157 min (between 06:00 and 08:00) to 53 min (between 14:00 and 16:00). Health worker contact time (HCT) was higher for adults (2.3 min) than children (1.7 min). Shorter wait times were associated with higher perceptions of quality of service. CONCLUSION: Despite shortages in health workers and funds, opportunities are available to increase efficiency in rural health centers. By removing bottlenecks to increase the productivity of health workers, centers in low-income countries can treat more patients and improve service quality.
Asunto(s)
Atención a la Salud/organización & administración , Eficiencia Organizacional/estadística & datos numéricos , Visita a Consultorio Médico/estadística & datos numéricos , Satisfacción del Paciente/estadística & datos numéricos , Servicios de Salud Rural/organización & administración , Adulto , Niño , Países en Desarrollo , Femenino , Personal de Salud/organización & administración , Humanos , Malaui , Masculino , Población Rural , Encuestas y CuestionariosRESUMEN
Nardostachys jatamansi is a medically important herb of Indian origin used for centuries in Ayurvedic and Unani systems of medicine for the treatment of various ailments. In the present paper, a 50% ethanolic extract of the rhizomes of N. jatamansi is shown to possess hepatoprotective activity. Pretreatment of rats with the extract (800 mg/kg body wt, orally) for three consecutive days significantly ameliorated the liver damage in rats exposed to the hepatotoxic compound thioacetamide. Elevated levels of serum transaminases (aminotransferases) and alkaline phosphatase, observed in thioacetamide alone treated group of animals, were significantly lowered in N. jatamansi pretreated rats. Pretreatment of the animals with the extract also resulted in an increase in survival in rats intoxicated with LD90 dose of the hepatotoxic drug.