Browsing by Author "Eden Habtemariam"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Exploring Patient Perspectives on Telehealth Services and Barriers to Access Among Patients with Chronic Medical Conditions Attending Follow-Up Clinics at ALERT Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
    (Addis Ababa University, 2025) Wendu Mitiku; Eden Habtemariam
    Background: Telehealth Service Has Become A Game-Changing Development in The Management of Chronic Diseases. It Allowed Consultations, Monitoring, And Increased Access to Health Services Remotely. Evidence on The Perspective of Patients and Barriers to Telehealth Use Among Patients with Chronic Medical Illnesses, However, Is Scant in Ethiopia. Objective: The Aim of This Study, Therefore, Is to Assess Patients' Perceived Views About the Telehealth Service, Barriers to Access, And the Factors Affecting Its Understanding, Utilization, And Satisfaction Among Patients Attending Follow-Up Clinics for Chronic Medical Conditions in ALERT Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods: The Design Adopted Is A Mixed-Method Cross-Sectional Study in Which the Structured Quantitative Survey Is Combined with Qualitative, In-Depth Interviews. The Overall Sample Included 280 Stratified Randomly Selected Patients with Chronic Conditions. Quantitative Data Analysis Was Done Through Descriptive Statistics and Logistic Regression, Whereas Thematic Analyses Were Carried Out for Qualitative Data. Results: The Use of Telehealth Services Was High, with 81.8% Of the Respondents Using the Service, And It Was Done Mainly by Phone Consultations At 55%. Satisfaction Was Strong, with 82.1% Rating Their Experience Positively. Qualitative Findings Identified the Value of Telehealth in Avoiding Travel, Saving Time, And Improving Access, Especially for Rural and Low-Income Participants. The Critical Barriers Included A Lack of Awareness, Followed by Limited Access to Technology and Digital Literacy. Occupation and Income Have Turned Out to Be Strong Predictors of Understanding, Utilization, And Satisfaction Regarding Telehealth. The Category with The Highest Odds in The Usage of Telehealth Was Self-Employed (AOR = 46.919, 95% CI: 8.724–252.349). Younger Age and Urban Residence Are Positively Associated with Better Understanding. Income, Education, And Employment Significantly Affect Satisfaction, Where Higher Socioeconomic Classes Are Associated with More Satisfaction. Conclusion: Although Telehealth Shows Potential to Improve Chronic Disease Management in Ethiopia, Some Huge Barriers Do Stand in Its Way. Digital Literacy, Affordability, And Technological Infrastructure, Along with Promotion and Patient Education, Must Be Considered as Targeted Approaches to Ensuring Equal Access to Telehealth.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Knowledge Attitude and Practice towards total pain assessment among Health Professionals Providing Palliative Care Service
    (Addis Ababa Uinverstiy, 2025) Amelework Worku; Eden Habtemariam
    The concept of total pain assessment entails assessment of physical, psychosocial, and spiritual pain in patients suffering from life threatening and serious illnesses. It is crucial to assess pain holistically to alleviate pain and suffering to increase quality of life. The aim of this study was to assess the practical implementation of total pain assessment. Objective; To assess knowledge, attitude and practice towards total pain assessment among health professionals providing palliative care service, in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa. Methods; A cross sectional study was done in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital palliative care unit from September to October 2025.Sample size of 69 calculated using single population formula, data was collected using self-administered questionnaire, data was cleaned, and entered using SPSS version 26. Data analysis was done with descriptive statistics using frequencies, percentages and mean. Association between the dependent and independent variables was determined using odds ratio at 95% level of confidence interval and P value 0.05 for significance. Result; 63 participants out of 69 with response rate of 91.3% participated in the study. 46(73%) were nurses and 17(27%) residents.38 (60.31%), 25(39.68%), and 30(47.6%) have adequate knowledge, favorable attitude and good practice respectively. Being a nurse was associated with unfavorable attitude with adjusted odds ratio of 0.004(0.005, 0.382) and p value 0.002. Conclusions and recommendations; This study showed health professionals working at palliative care unit in Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital have adequate knowledge, but unfavorable attitude, and poor practice , it is recommended to give proper training and developing guide lines and protocols to assess pain holistically in palliative care unit of TASH. xi 1 1. Introduction 1.1. Back ground Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage as defined by the International Association for the Study of pain (IASP)(1).The IASP also classifies pain as acute, which lasts for short time and chronic lasting more than 3 month which passed healing time(2).The treatment approach also differs (2).The term total pain refers to pain perception not only as a physical pain but that it has psychological, spiritual and social consequences(1). Pain is the most prevalent symptom among cancer patients receiving palliative care .Around 50%-60 % of patients with cancer suffer from pain. Uncontrolled pain triggers physiological stress response, causes emotional and social distress and decreases quality of life of patients which is described as total pain(3).Hence goals of pain management in cancer patients includes relieving physical pain and also restoring physical, emotional and social function(3,4) . Different Studies show poor knowledge and attitude towards cancer pain and its treatment among health professionals, patients, and family(5).Among health professionals there are misconceptions regarding cancer pain assessment and management. Many health professionals believe that patients exaggerate their pain, and many believe opioids and other analgesics used for cancer pain treatment cause tolerance and addiction(6). There was also gap in knowledge of health professionals regarding pharmacology of common analgesics used for cancer pain treatment and pain assessment in pediatrics(6). Health professionals especially nurses and residents spend most of the time with patients, so assessing their knowledge ,attitude and practice towards pain assessment is critical for effective pain relief(2) .Proper pain management requires adequate knowledge and positive attitude of health professionals(7).However , many studies show low score of health professionals on important aspects of pain management, including initial pain assessment, treatment, reassessment and knowledge regarding pharmacology of analgesic drugs like narcotics(7).These findings from other studies indicate the need for assessing health professionals knowledge, attitude and practice towards pain assessment(7). Thus the main aim of this study is to assess knowledge, attitude and practice of health professionals providing palliative care service towards total pain assessment at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa Ethiopia.