AUTHOR=Müller Sophie Alice , Elimian Kelly , Rafamatanantsoa Jean Florent , Reichert Felix , Mosala Francis , Böff Lena , Touré Sounan Fidèle , Boone Idesbald , Ravaoarisoa Lantonirina , Nduenga Sagesse , Ortu Giuseppina , Pozo-Martin Francisco , Tomczyk Sara , Eckmanns Tim , Okwor Tochi , Akoua-Koffi Chantal , Diané Bamourou , Randriamanantany Zely Arivelo , Ahuka Steve , Ochu Chinwe Lucia , El-Bcheraoui Charbel 

TITLE=The burden and treatment of non-communicable diseases among healthcare workers in sub-Saharan Africa: a multi-country cross-sectional study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1375221

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2024.1375221

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Introduction: Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), the leading cause of death globally, are estimated to overtake communicable diseases in sub-Sahara Africa, where healthcare workers (HCWs) play a crucial role in prevention and treatment, but are in extreme shortage, thereby increasing the burden of NCDs among this specific population. To provide evidence for policy-making, we assessed the NCD burden, associated factors and treatment among HCWs in four sub-Saharan African countries.We conducted a cross-sectional study across four sub-Saharan African countries (Côte d'Ivoire (CIV), Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Madagascar (MDG), and Nigeria (NIG)) between February and December 2022. In a standardized questionnaire, sociodemographic, chronic disease and treatment data were self-reported. We estimated the prevalence of 1) at least one chronic disease, 2) hypertension, and used backward elimination logistic regression model to identify risk factors.We recruited a total of 6,848 HCWs. The prevalence of at least one chronic disease ranged between 9.7% in NIG and 20.6% in MDG, the prevalence of hypertension between 5.4% in CIV and 11.3% in MDG. At most, reported treatment rates reached 36.5%.The odds of each of both outcomes increased with age (at least one chronic disease adjusted odds ratio: