• Indian J Med Res · Oct 2023

    Challenges in screening for sickle cell disease among newborns from the tribal region of Palghar, Maharashtra during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    • Suchitra Surve, Sanjay Chauhan, Ragini Kulkarni, Neha Salvi, Anita Nadkarni, Manisha Madkaikar, Khushbu Chaudhary, Abhijit Chavan, Dayanand Suryavanshi, Anil Thorat, and Harpreet Kaur.
    • Department of Child Health Research, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Reproductive & Child Health, Mumbai, India.
    • Indian J Med Res. 2023 Oct 1; 158 (4): 378383378-383.

    Background ObjectivesDespite several adversities imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was crucial to sustain research having public health relevance such as investigations around sickle cell disease (SCD). Against this background, an ongoing ICMR-multicentric study for newborn screening of SCD in the tribal population at Model Rural Health Research Unit (MRHRU-Dahanu) in Palghar District, Maharashtra constituted the current study setting. This was a descriptive study wherein, certain measures were undertaken and strategies were developed in view of the challenges in newborn screening for SCD due to the COVID-19 pandemic during December 2019-September 2021 at Sub District Hospital, MRHRU-Dahanu.MethodsDuring the onset of the pandemic, (December 2019-March 2020), the follow up was possible in 26.7 per cent (20/75) of the newborns. Subsequently, challenges such as travel restrictions, fear of COVID-19, shortage of staff were experienced with respect to enrolment and follow up visits.ResultsAfter implementing certain pragmatic strategies (ASHA involvement, usage of virtual platform and flexible visits), follow up rate increased to 47.5 per cent (66/139) between July 2020-April 2021 (post first lockdown) and to 66 per cent (65/98) during the second wave (May 2021-August 2021).Interpretation ConclusionsThe study emphasizes the importance of network building, use of virtual platform and engaging health workers in tribal settings. Such pragmatic approaches have the potential to pave a path for further implementation research involving specific interventions to improve health outcomes in tribal settings.Copyright © 2023 Copyright: © 2023 Indian Journal of Medical Research.

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