Description
Background: The impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on Sub-Saharan African women, known to make up a significant percentage of the workforce, is poorly understood. Therefore, there is a pressing need for an in-depth exploration of their lived experiences during the pandemic. The paper reports on two themes that have emerged from responses to the questions seeking to establish what Sub-Saharan African women’s experiences of access to or use of healthcare systems / services has been like during the ‘COVID 19’ pandemic.Aim: To explore and gain an understanding of access to healthcare and the economic impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on Sub-Saharan African women working/living in the diaspora and at home.
Methods: A qualitative exploratory approach with data collected over a period
of 6 months from July 2020 using 8 x 90-minute virtual focus group discussions
with 10 panel members plus a 90–120-minute interactive webinar with 36 participants from the target population.
Results: 1. Disparity in the quality of and access to healthcare services between the West and Africa in need of urgent address. 2. A strong belief in the efficacy of traditional herbal/complementary therapies in preventing and/or treating Covid 19 for all women despite country of residence.
Discussion and conclusions: There is a strong link between the negative socioeconomic impact of the Covid 19 pandemic and poor access to healthcare services across Africa. Given that the pandemic knows no boarders, policymakers should adopt a global approach to addressing the socio-economic impact of Covid 19. The rise in use and heavy reliance on traditional
and herbal alternatives is worth further research. Can we comprehend the African tradition of medicine in order to create and articulate a meaningful Covid 19 discourse globally?
| Period | 8 Sep 2021 |
|---|---|
| Event title | RCN International Nursing Research Conference |
| Event type | Conference |
| Degree of Recognition | National |