Abstract
Background: Schistosomiasis, one of the neglected tropical diseases, is a water-based parasitic disease of public health importance. Currently, tests for Schistosoma haematobium infection either demonstrate poor specificity, are expensive or too laborious for use in endemic countries, creating a need for more sensitive, cheaper, and easy to use devices for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis. To ensure engagement during the process of device development; and effective acceptance and use after the introduction of diagnostics devices for S. haematobium, there is a need to involve stakeholders with varying power, interest, and stakes in device co-creation, as well as those relevant for later use situation in the diagnostic landscape. The main goal of this study is to identify and analyze relevant stakeholders for co-creation using a power-interest matrix.Materials and Methods: The study was based on an action research methodology using a case study approach. A contextual inquiry approach consisting of 2 stages: stakeholder identification and interview; and stakeholder analysis was used. The field part of the study was carried out in Oyo State, Nigeria using a multistage cluster purposive sampling technique based on the category of stakeholders to be interviewed predicated on the organizational structure within the state and communities. A mix of qualitative research techniques was used. Identified themes related to power and interest were mapped and analyzed.Results: We identified 17 characteristics of stakeholders across 7 categories of stakeholders important for schistosomiasis diagnostics. Most of the stakeholders were important for both the co-creation and adoption phase of the device development for diagnostics. However, not all stakeholders were relevant to co-creation. Key Stakeholders relevant for diagnostics co-creation demonstrated significant social power, organization power, and legitimate power bases. Most of the stakeholders showed significant interest in the device to be created.Discussion: The power and interest of these stakeholders reveal some insight into how each stakeholder may be engaged for both co-creation and device usage. The involvement of relevant actors who will also be important for co-creation and implementation, will simplify the engagement process for the critical stakeholders, increase the ability to manage the process, and increase diagnostic device acceptability.
Highlights
Schistosomiasis, one of the neglected tropical diseases, is a water-based parasitic disease of public health importance
Literature scan: First, we identified stakeholders based on the literature on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) research [4, 40,41,42] as well as policy documents on schistosomiasis in Nigeria [9, 11]
“we basically provide technical assistance for the government to be able to carry our deworming. It involves anything from policy, advocacy, planning and collection and distribution of the drug, monitoring the program and. . . so we supply, we provide funding for them, we provide the technical know-how, working with the state. . . well, we went to the government to say we would have to work with them to carry out a state-wide deworming program so in a way should I say we initiated it but it’s the government program. . . and we do not, we are not the one that provide the drugs, the drugs are provided by the federal ministry of health, it’s a free donation. . . through World Health Organization (WHO) and WHO is the source of supply” Country Director, Evidence Action
Summary
Schistosomiasis, one of the neglected tropical diseases, is a water-based parasitic disease of public health importance. Schistosomiasis, one of the 20 Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), is a water-based parasitic disease of public health importance. S. haematobium and S. mansoni infections are common in Africa [2, 3] Of these species, S. haematobium is the most prevalent parasite in Nigeria affecting an estimated 30 million people yearly [1, 4]. Depending on the stage of the infection, a wide range of clinical symptoms may occur, many of which are hard to distinguish from several other diseases [5] It is a notable cause of morbidity with many infected persons experiencing hematuria, dysuria, bladder-wall pathology, and hydronephrosis [8]. While the country currently undertakes a large-scale deworming exercise of school-age children in endemic zones with praziquantel [9], addressing diagnosis among adults who are not covered by mass administration of praziquantel is a challenge to the disease control
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