Assessing Physicians' Adherence to the 2023 Sudan Malaria Case Management Protocol

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Infectious Disease Epidemiology
• Healthcare Quality Improvement

Background:

• Malaria remains a significant public health concern in Sudan, necessitating strict adherence to national guidelines for effective control.
• Healthcare provider adherence is crucial for preventing drug resistance and optimizing patient outcomes in malaria management.
• This study focused on assessing and enhancing physician adherence to established malaria diagnosis and treatment protocols.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the baseline adherence of physicians to national malaria guidelines.
• To assess the impact of targeted interventions, including training and guideline dissemination, on physician adherence.
• To identify key areas for improvement in malaria diagnosis and treatment practices.

Main Methods:

• A two-cycle audit was conducted at Dongola Specialized Hospital, involving physicians' clinical practices.
• The first cycle assessed baseline adherence (N=42) to standards like protocol compliance and treatment appropriateness.
• Interventions included physician training and guideline distribution, followed by a second audit (N=39) to measure impact.

Main Results:

• Initial adherence was low in areas such as general protocol compliance (30.95%) and malaria in pregnancy treatment (23.81%).
• Post-intervention, protocol adherence significantly improved to 89.74%, and malaria in pregnancy treatment adherence rose to 64.10%.
• Adherence to first-line treatment for P. falciparum remained high (90.48% initially, 100% post-intervention).

Conclusions:

• The audit-based interventions effectively improved physician adherence to national malaria guidelines in Sudan.
• Continuous training and auditing are vital for enhancing malaria management quality.
• Improvements in adherence contribute to better patient outcomes and reduced malaria burden.