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Strengthening primary healthcare in Kosovo requires tailoring primary, secondary and tertiary prevention interventions and consideration of mental health

Obas, K. A. and Bytyci-Katanolli, A. and Kwiatkowski, M. and Ramadani, Q. and Fota, N. and Jerliu, N. and Statovci, S. and Gerold, J. and Zahorka, M. and Probst-Hensch, N.. (2022) Strengthening primary healthcare in Kosovo requires tailoring primary, secondary and tertiary prevention interventions and consideration of mental health. Front Public Health, 10. p. 794309.

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Abstract

Objectives: Kosovo has the lowest life expectancy in the Balkans. Primary healthcare (PHC) plays an essential role in non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention. We described primary, secondary and tertiary prevention indicators in Kosovo and assessed their association with depressive symptoms. Methods: PHC users (n = 977) from the Kosovo NCD cohort baseline study were included. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Depressive Anxiety Stress Scale-21. Cross-sectional associations between depressive symptoms and prevention indicators were quantified with mixed logistic regression models. Results: Poor nutrition (85%), physical inactivity (70%), obesity (53%), and smoking (21%) were common NCD risk factors. Many cases of hypertension (19%), diabetes (16%) and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) (45%) remained undetected by a PHC professional. Uncontrolled hypertension (28%), diabetes (79%), and COPD (76%) were also common. Depressive symptoms were positively associated with physical inactivity (OR 1.02; 95% CI 1.00-1.05 per 1-point increase in DASS-21) and undetected COPD (OR 1.07; 95% CI 1.00-1.15), but inversely with undetected diabetes (OR 0.95; 95% CI 0.91-1.00). Conclusions: Continued attention and tailored modifications to primary, secondary and tertiary prevention in Kosovo are needed to narrow the Balkan health gap.
Faculties and Departments:09 Associated Institutions > Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
09 Associated Institutions > Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) > Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (EPH) > Biostatistics > Biostatistics Frequentist Modelling (Kwiatkowski)
09 Associated Institutions > Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) > Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (EPH) > Chronic Disease Epidemiology > Exposome Science (Probst-Hensch)
03 Faculty of Medicine > Departement Public Health > Sozial- und Präventivmedizin > Exposome Science (Probst-Hensch)
09 Associated Institutions > Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) > Department of Swiss Centre for International Health (SCIH) > Systems Strengthening and Health Promotion (Prytherch)
UniBasel Contributors:Obas, Katrina and Bytyçi Katanolli, Ariana and Kwiatkowski, Marek and Zahorka, Manfred and Probst-Hensch, Nicole
Item Type:Article, refereed
Article Subtype:Research Article
ISSN:2296-2565 (Electronic)2296-2565 (Linking)
Note:Publication type according to Uni Basel Research Database: Journal article
Language:English
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Last Modified:27 Dec 2022 20:27
Deposited On:27 Dec 2022 20:27

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