Protocol of mixed-methods assessment of demographic, epidemiological and clinical profile of decentralised patients with cancer at Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital and Rob Ferreira Hospital, South Africa
Sikhumbuzo A Mabunda,
Wezile Chitha,
Buyiswa Swartbooi,
Zukiswa Jafta,
Danleen Hongoro,
Lizo Godlimpi,
Onke R Mnyaka,
Natasha Williams,
Lazola Buthi,
Sibulelo Kuseni,
Christopher Zungu,
Siyabonga Sibulawa,
Awam Mavimbela,
Olona Giwu,
Vivien Essel,
John Nasila
Affiliations
Sikhumbuzo A Mabunda
2 George Institute for Global Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Wezile Chitha
Health System Enablement and Innovation Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Buyiswa Swartbooi
Health System Enablement and Innovation Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Zukiswa Jafta
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Danleen Hongoro
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Lizo Godlimpi
Public Health, Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha, South Africa
Onke R Mnyaka
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Natasha Williams
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Lazola Buthi
Oncology, Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital, Mthatha, South Africa
Sibulelo Kuseni
Oncology, Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital, Mthatha, South Africa
Christopher Zungu
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Siyabonga Sibulawa
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Awam Mavimbela
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Olona Giwu
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Vivien Essel
Health System Enablement and Innovation Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
John Nasila
Faculty of Health Sciences, Health Systems Enablement and Innovation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Introduction Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally. However, cancer care services are often concentrated in urban centres. Two of South Africa’s hospitals have decentralised cancer care delivery since February 2018 and August 2019, respectively. This study aims to describe the demographic, epidemiological and clinical profile of various cancers at Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital (NMAH) and Rob Ferreira Hospital (RFH), in South Africa’s Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga provinces, respectively.Methods and analysis This study will be conducted in the Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga provinces. A mixed-methods study design will be undertaken to gain insight on the characteristics of randomly sampled patients who are treated for cancer at NMAH and RFH between 1 March 2018 and 28 February 2022. A validated, researcher-administered survey questionnaire will be used to assess demographic characteristics, and prevalence of different cancers among patients. Concurrently, a document review will be undertaken on patients with cancer using a patient registry to ascertain the duration of diagnosis, type of cancer(s), management plan and patient survival time. STATA V.17 will be used for data analysis. The Shapiro-Wilk test will be used to explore the distribution of numerical variables. The χ2 or Fisher’s exact tests will be used depending on the value of the expected frequencies to compare categorical variables. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates will be used to determine the survival time. Hazard ratios will be used to determine the predictors of death. The level of statistical significance will be set at p value ≤0.05. The 95% CI will be used for the precision of estimates.Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committees of the University of the Witwatersrand (M210211) and Walter Sisulu University, South Africa (Ref: 040/2020). Findings will be reported through peer-reviewed journal(s), presentations at conferences and at partner meetings.
