Screening female refugees in Sudan’s challenging Settings: A simple, feasible, and affordable telemedicine framework

Abstract

Background and Aims: Cancers often go unnoticed during emergencies; exacerbating underdiagnoses and late presentations. Telemedicine-driven screening systems emerge as effective and economical alternatives, particularly crucial amidst Sudan’s current refugee situation. Methods: Using the 3-step process: First, cancer burden was assessed using Refugees Commission data and presented as per 100,000 period prevalence. Second, case definitions for malignancies under study were then created as a screening base. Third, the telemedicine framework was built following user-centered design’s (UCD) 4 steps (analysis of stakeholders’ needs; design using the MAIA model; implementation according to BPMN flowchart; and users’ feedback evaluation). Results: The most common tumor was breast followed by ovarian cancer (median=16.45 and 3.19 per 100,000). UCD’s four steps shaped our framework, with MAIA aiding the management plan’s design for suspected cases. BPMN guaranteed seamless implementation, and our model scored 6.83 out of 7 on a Martinez-Alcalá inspired Likert system upon evaluation. Conclusions: Designing a telemedicine-based screening system for refugees necessitates incorporating epidemiological mapping, clinical presentations, contextual and cultural dimensions, and ensuring overall feasibility.