Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has a tangible impact on the health care systems globallyand is represented by interruption of the usual services in many health facilities and exposingvulnerable patients to significant risks.Objectives: We aimed to evaluate this pandemic’s impact on Iraq...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Anbar
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Al-Anbar Medical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://amj.uoanbar.edu.iq/article_171057_f1f33df9093c504d8900d0ae7bf23a7d.pdf |
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| author | Ahmed Ahmed Mohammad Omar Farouq Alkaiya . Hoda Jrad . Abdul Rahman Jazieh . Layth Mula-Hussain . |
| author_facet | Ahmed Ahmed Mohammad Omar Farouq Alkaiya . Hoda Jrad . Abdul Rahman Jazieh . Layth Mula-Hussain . |
| author_sort | Ahmed Ahmed |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has a tangible impact on the health care systems globallyand is represented by interruption of the usual services in many health facilities and exposingvulnerable patients to significant risks.Objectives: We aimed to evaluate this pandemic’s impact on Iraq’s cancer care.Materials and methods: We conducted an exploratory study using a validated web-basedquestionnaire of 51 items. The questionnaire collected information on the capacity and servicesoffered at the Iraqi cancer centers, the magnitude of care disruption, reasons for the disruption,challenges faced, patient harm estimation, and the interventions implemented during the pandemic.Results: 18 cancer centers from 11 Iraqi governorates took part between 21st April and 8th May2020. These centers were serving around 18,867 new patients per year. Most of them (72.2%)were facing challenges in delivering their care during the pandemic. Although 44.4% of the centersreduced their services as part of a pre-emptive strategy, other reported reasons included lack ofpersonal protective equipment (22.2%), an overwhelmed system (11.1%), and a restricted approachto medications (11.1%). Missing at least one therapy cycle by > 10% of the patients was reportedin 38.9% of the centers. Participants have reported that their patients were exposed to potentialharm from interruption of cancer-specific care (44.4%) and non-cancer-related care (33.3%).Conclusion: The negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer care in Iraq is evident.Additional research to estimate such an effect at the patients’ level and the required measures tocounteract this problem is vital. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-df7dbb7dd74947aca9c63b4676cff0f9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2706-6207 2664-3154 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | University of Anbar |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Al-Anbar Medical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-df7dbb7dd74947aca9c63b4676cff0f92024-12-01T20:13:22ZengUniversity of AnbarAl-Anbar Medical Journal2706-62072664-31542021-06-0117191510.33091/amj.2021.171057171057Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory ResearchAhmed Ahmed0Mohammad Omar Farouq Alkaiya .1Hoda Jrad .2Abdul Rahman Jazieh .3Layth Mula-Hussain .4Department of Oncology, Anbar Cancer Center, Anbar Health Directorate, Ramadi, Anbar, Iraq.Department of Oncology, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center,King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, KSA.Department of Community and Environmental Health, College of Public Health and Health Informatics, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, KSA.Cincinnati Cancer Advisors, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.Radiation Oncology Division, The Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. College of Medicine, Nineveh University, Mosul, IraBackground: The COVID-19 pandemic has a tangible impact on the health care systems globallyand is represented by interruption of the usual services in many health facilities and exposingvulnerable patients to significant risks.Objectives: We aimed to evaluate this pandemic’s impact on Iraq’s cancer care.Materials and methods: We conducted an exploratory study using a validated web-basedquestionnaire of 51 items. The questionnaire collected information on the capacity and servicesoffered at the Iraqi cancer centers, the magnitude of care disruption, reasons for the disruption,challenges faced, patient harm estimation, and the interventions implemented during the pandemic.Results: 18 cancer centers from 11 Iraqi governorates took part between 21st April and 8th May2020. These centers were serving around 18,867 new patients per year. Most of them (72.2%)were facing challenges in delivering their care during the pandemic. Although 44.4% of the centersreduced their services as part of a pre-emptive strategy, other reported reasons included lack ofpersonal protective equipment (22.2%), an overwhelmed system (11.1%), and a restricted approachto medications (11.1%). Missing at least one therapy cycle by > 10% of the patients was reportedin 38.9% of the centers. Participants have reported that their patients were exposed to potentialharm from interruption of cancer-specific care (44.4%) and non-cancer-related care (33.3%).Conclusion: The negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer care in Iraq is evident.Additional research to estimate such an effect at the patients’ level and the required measures tocounteract this problem is vital.https://amj.uoanbar.edu.iq/article_171057_f1f33df9093c504d8900d0ae7bf23a7d.pdfcovid_19iraqcancercare |
| spellingShingle | Ahmed Ahmed Mohammad Omar Farouq Alkaiya . Hoda Jrad . Abdul Rahman Jazieh . Layth Mula-Hussain . Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research Al-Anbar Medical Journal covid_19 iraq cancer care |
| title | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research |
| title_full | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research |
| title_fullStr | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research |
| title_short | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care in Iraq: Exploratory Research |
| title_sort | impact of the covid 19 pandemic on cancer care in iraq exploratory research |
| topic | covid_19 iraq cancer care |
| url | https://amj.uoanbar.edu.iq/article_171057_f1f33df9093c504d8900d0ae7bf23a7d.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ahmedahmed impactofthecovid19pandemiconcancercareiniraqexploratoryresearch AT mohammadomarfarouqalkaiya impactofthecovid19pandemiconcancercareiniraqexploratoryresearch AT hodajrad impactofthecovid19pandemiconcancercareiniraqexploratoryresearch AT abdulrahmanjazieh impactofthecovid19pandemiconcancercareiniraqexploratoryresearch AT laythmulahussain impactofthecovid19pandemiconcancercareiniraqexploratoryresearch |