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Aims.: There is convincing evidence that lower socioeconomic position is associated with increased risk of mental disorders. However, the mechanisms involved are not well understood. This study aims to elucidate the causal pathways between socioeconomic position and depression symptoms in South African adults. Two possible causal theories are examined: social causation, which suggests that poor socioeconomic conditions cause mental ill health; and social drift, which suggests that those with poor mental health are more likely to drift into poor socioeconomic circumstances. Methods.: The study used longitudinal and cross-sectional observational data on 3904 adults, from a randomised trial carried out in 38 primary health care clinics between 2011 and 2012. Structural equation models and counterfactual mediation analyses were used to examine causal pathways in two directions. First, we examined social causation pathways, with language (a proxy for racial or ethnic category) being treated as an exposure, while education, unemployment, income and depression were treated as sequential mediators and outcomes. Second, social drift was explored with depression treated as a potential influence on health-related quality of life, job loss and, finally, income. Results.: The results suggest that the effects of language on depression at baseline, and on changes in depression during follow-up, were mediated through education and income but not through unemployment. Adverse effects of unemployment and job loss on depression appeared to be mostly mediated through income. The effect of depression on decreasing income appeared to be mediated by job loss. Conclusions.: These results suggest that both social causation and social selection processes operate concurrently. This raises the possibility that people could get trapped in a vicious cycle in which poor socioeconomic conditions lead to depression, which, in turn, can cause further damage to their economic prospects. This study also suggests that modifiable factors such as income, employment and treatable depression are suitable targets for intervention in the short to medium term, while in the longer term reducing inequalities in education will be necessary to address the deeply entrenched inequalities in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: HIV is characterised by high rates of comorbidity with mental health conditions including depression, as such, the detection and treatment of comorbid depression is critical to achieve viral load suppression. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a collaborative care intervention for depression among adults with comorbid depression symptoms receiving ART in primary health care (PHC) facilities., Methods: We conducted a pragmatic cluster-randomised trial in 40 clinics in the North West province of South Africa. PHC clinics were stratified by sub-district and randomised in a 1:1 ratio. Participants were ≥ 18 years, receiving ART, and had depression symptoms indicated by Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) score ≥ 9. Intervention clinics received: i) supplementary mental health training and clinical communication skills for PHC nurses; ii) workshops for PHC doctors on treating depression; and iii) lay counselling services. Using mixed effects regression models, we assessed co-primary outcomes of PHQ-9 response at 6 months (≥50 % reduction in baseline PHQ-9 score) and viral load suppression at 12 months (viral load<1000 copies/mL)., Results: The intervention had no effect in PHQ-9 response (49 % vs 57 %, risk difference (RD) = -0.08, 95 % CI = -0.19; 0.03, p = 0.184) or viral load suppression (85 % vs 84 %, RD = 0.02, 95 % CI = -0.01; 0.04, p = 0.125). Nurses referred 4298 clinic patients to counsellors, however, only 66/1008 (7 %) of intervention arm participants were referred to counsellors at any point during the study., Limitations: The highly pragmatic approach of this trial limited exposure to the counselling component of the intervention and referral to doctors for initiation of antidepressant treatment was extremely low., Conclusion: The trial showed no effect of a district-based intervention to strengthen collaborative care for depression. The trial revealed the extent of the treatment gap in the context of scaling up mental health services., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02407691); Pan African Clinical Trials Registry (201504001078347)., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: The increased prevalence of physical diseases among individuals with mental illness contributes to their increased risk of mortality. However, the mediating role of specific diseases in the effect of mental illness on mortality is not well understood., Method: We conducted a longitudinal causal mediation analysis using data from beneficiaries of a South African medical insurance scheme from 2011 to 2020. We estimated the overall effect of major depressive disorder (MDD) on mortality and evaluated reductions in this overall effect through hypothetical interventions on the risks of mediating physical diseases using an interventional effects approach. Monte Carlo simulation-based g-computation was used for estimation., Results: Among 981,540 individuals, 143,314 (14.6%) were diagnosed with MDD. Mortality risk after 8 years was 6.5% under MDD, and 5.3% under no MDD (risk ratio 1.23, 95% CI = 1.19, 1.26). Overall, 43.4% of this disparity could be attributed to higher rates of physical comorbidities due to MDD. Cardiovascular diseases accounted for 17.8%, followed by chronic respiratory diseases (8.6%), cancers (7.5%), diabetes and chronic kidney disease (5.8%), tuberculosis (4.3%), and HIV (2.7%)., Conclusion: Within the privately insured population of South Africa, MDD is associated with increased mortality. We found that noncommunicable diseases, rather than infectious diseases, are important mediators of the effect of MDD on mortality., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Introduction: Courier delivery has become a popular antiretroviral therapy (ART) distribution method in some HIV care settings, yet data on ART courier delivery and how it relates to ART outcomes are scarce. We studied the differences in viral suppression rates between individuals from a South African private sector HIV programme receiving ART by courier delivery and those receiving ART through traditional retail dispensing., Methods: Individuals aged 15 years or older who were actively enrolled in the Aid for AIDS programme between January 2011 and July 2022 were eligible for the analysis. The outcome of interest was viral suppression defined as a viral load (VL) <400 copies per ml. We calculated adjusted odds ratios (OR) for the association between the ART distribution method and viral suppression, comparing those receiving refills through courier pharmacies versus retail dispensing at the time of the VL testing. We used generalized estimating equations to account for repeated VL testing of the same individual. The models were adjusted for age, sex, calendar year, ART regimen, history of mental illness and medical insurance scheme. We computed adjusted ORs for the calendar periods 2011-2013, 2014-2016, 2017-2019, 2020-2022 and overall., Results: We extracted 442,619 VL measurements from 68,720 eligible individuals, 39,406 (57.3%) were women. The median number of VL measurements per individual was 6 (IQR 3-10). VL suppression was detected in 398,901 (90.1%) tests, and 185,701 (42.0%) of the tests were taken while the individual was receiving ART by courier delivery. Overall, courier delivery was associated with 5% higher odds of viral suppression than retail dispensing (adjusted OR 1.05, 95% CI 1.02-1.08). The strength and direction of this association varied by calendar period, with an adjusted OR of 1.37 (95% CI 1.27-1.48) in 2011-2013 and 1.02 (95% CI 0.97-1.07) in 2020-2022., Conclusions: Courier delivery of ART is a viable alternative to retail dispensing in the South African private sector, as it was associated with higher viral suppression until 2016 and similar suppression rates in recent years. Further research is needed to investigate the potential benefits and drawbacks of courier delivery of ART in both private and public healthcare settings., (© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of the International AIDS Society published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International AIDS Society.)

Background: Several studies have found lower prostate cancer diagnosis rates among men with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV; MWH) than men without HIV but reasons for this finding remain unclear., Methods: We used claims data from a South African private medical insurance scheme (July 2017- July 2020) to assess prostate cancer diagnosis rates among men aged ≥ 18 years with and without HIV. Using flexible parametric survival models, we estimated hazard ratios (HR) for the association between HIV and incident prostate cancer diagnoses. We accounted for potential confounding by age, population group, and sexually transmitted infections (confounder-adjusted model) and additionally for potential mediation by prostatitis diagnoses, prostate-specific antigen testing, and prostate biopsies (fully adjusted model)., Results: We included 288,194 men, of whom 20,074 (7%) were living with HIV. Prostate cancer was diagnosed in 1,614 men without HIV (median age at diagnosis: 67 years) and in 82 MWH (median age at diagnosis: 60 years). In the unadjusted analysis, prostate cancer diagnosis rates were 35% lower among MWH than men without HIV [HR, 0.65; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.52-0.82]. However, this association was no longer evident in the confounder-adjusted model (HR, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.82-1.30) or in the fully adjusted model (HR, 1.14; 95% CI, 0.91-1.44)., Conclusions: When accounting for potential confounders and mediators, our analysis found no evidence of lower prostate cancer diagnosis rates among MWH than men without HIV in South Africa., Impact: Our results do not support the hypothesis that HIV decreases the risk of prostate cancer., (©2024 The Authors; Published by the American Association for Cancer Research.)

Background: The development of strategies to better detect and manage patients with multiple long-term conditions requires estimates of the most prevalent condition combinations. However, standard meta-analysis tools are not well suited to synthesising heterogeneous multimorbidity data., Methods: We developed a statistical model to synthesise data on associations between diseases and nationally representative prevalence estimates and applied the model to South Africa. Published and unpublished data were reviewed, and meta-regression analysis was conducted to assess pairwise associations between 10 conditions: arthritis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), depression, diabetes, HIV, hypertension, ischaemic heart disease (IHD), stroke and tuberculosis. The national prevalence of each condition in individuals aged 15 and older was then independently estimated, and these estimates were integrated with the ORs from the meta-regressions in a statistical model, to estimate the national prevalence of each condition combination., Results: The strongest disease associations in South Africa are between COPD and asthma (OR 14.6, 95% CI 10.3 to 19.9), COPD and IHD (OR 9.2, 95% CI 8.3 to 10.2) and IHD and stroke (OR 7.2, 95% CI 5.9 to 8.4). The most prevalent condition combinations in individuals aged 15+ are hypertension and arthritis (7.6%, 95% CI 5.8% to 9.5%), hypertension and diabetes (7.5%, 95% CI 6.4% to 8.6%) and hypertension and HIV (4.8%, 95% CI 3.3% to 6.6%). The average numbers of comorbidities are greatest in the case of COPD (2.3, 95% CI 2.1 to 2.6), stroke (2.1, 95% CI 1.8 to 2.4) and IHD (1.9, 95% CI 1.6 to 2.2)., Conclusion: South Africa has high levels of HIV, hypertension, diabetes and arthritis, by international standards, and these are reflected in the most prevalent condition combinations. However, less prevalent conditions such as COPD, stroke and IHD contribute disproportionately to the multimorbidity burden, with high rates of comorbidity. This modelling approach can be used in other settings to characterise the most important disease combinations and levels of comorbidity., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)

Aims: Prior research, largely focused on US male veterans, indicates an increased risk of cardiovascular disease among individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Data from other settings and populations are scarce. The objective of this study is to examine PTSD as a risk factor for incident major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in South Africa., Methods: We analysed reimbursement claims (2011-2020) of a cohort of South African medical insurance scheme beneficiaries aged 18 years or older. We calculated adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) for associations between PTSD and MACEs using Cox proportional hazard models and calculated the effect of PTSD on MACEs using longitudinal targeted maximum likelihood estimation., Results: We followed 1,009,113 beneficiaries over a median of 3.0 years (IQR 1.1-6.0). During follow-up, 12,662 (1.3%) persons were diagnosed with PTSD and 39,255 (3.9%) had a MACE. After adjustment for sex, HIV status, age, population group, substance use disorders, psychotic disorders, major depressive disorder, sleep disorders and the use of antipsychotic medication, PTSD was associated with a 16% increase in the risk of MACEs (aHR 1.16, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05-1.28). The risk ratio for the effect of PTSD on MACEs decreased from 1.59 (95% CI 1.49-1.68) after 1 year of follow-up to 1.14 (95% CI 1.11-1.16) after 8 years of follow-up., Conclusion: Our study provides empirical support for an increased risk of MACEs in males and females with PTSD from a general population sample in South Africa. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring cardiovascular risk among individuals diagnosed with PTSD.

HIV infection increases the risk of developing cervical cancer; however, longitudinal studies in sub-Saharan Africa comparing cervical cancer rates between women living with HIV (WLWH) and women without HIV are scarce. To address this gap, we compared cervical precancer and cancer incidence rates between WLWH and women without HIV in South Africa using reimbursement claims data from a medical insurance scheme from January 2011 to June 2020. We used Royston-Parmar flexible parametric survival models to estimate cervical precancer and cancer incidence rates as a continuous function of age, stratified by HIV status. Our study population consisted of 518 048 women, with exclusions based on the endpoint of interest. To analyse cervical cancer incidence, we included 517 312 women, of whom 564 developed cervical cancer. WLWH had an ~3-fold higher risk of developing cervical precancer and cancer than women without HIV (adjusted hazard ratio for cervical cancer: 2.99; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.40-3.73). For all endpoints of interest, the estimated incidence rates were higher in WLWH than women without HIV. Cervical cancer rates among WLWH increased at early ages and peaked at 49 years (122/100 000 person-years; 95% CI: 100-147), whereas, in women without HIV, incidence rates peaked at 56 years (40/100 000 person-years; 95% CI: 36-45). Cervical precancer rates peaked in women in their 30s. Analyses of age-specific cervical cancer rates by HIV status are essential to inform the design of targeted cervical cancer prevention policies in Southern Africa and other regions with a double burden of HIV and cervical cancer., (© 2023 The Authors. International Journal of Cancer published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of UICC.)

Background: People with mental illness have a reduced life expectancy, but the extent of the mortality gap and the contribution of natural and unnatural causes to excess mortality among people with mental illness in South Africa are unknown., Methods: We analysed reimbursement claims from South African medical insurance scheme beneficiaries aged 15-85 years. We estimated excess life years lost (LYL) associated with organic, substance use, psychotic, mood, anxiety, eating, personality, developmental or any mental disorders., Results: We followed 1,070,183 beneficiaries for a median of three years, of whom 282,926 (26.4 %) received mental health diagnoses. Men with a mental health diagnosis lost 3.83 life years (95 % CI 3.58-4.10) compared to men without. Women with a mental health diagnosis lost 2.19 life years (1.97-2.41) compared to women without. Excess mortality varied by sex and diagnosis, from 11.50 LYL (95 % CI 9.79-13.07) among men with alcohol use disorder to 0.87 LYL (0.40-1.43) among women with generalised anxiety disorder. Most LYL were attributable to natural causes (men: 3.42, women: 1.94). A considerable number of LYL were attributable to unnatural causes among men with bipolar (1.52) or substance use (2.45) disorder., Limitations: Mental diagnoses are based on reimbursement claims., Conclusions: Premature mortality among South African individuals with mental disorders is high. Our findings support interventions for the prevention, early detection, and treatment of physical comorbidities in this population. Targeted programs for suicide prevention and substance use treatment, particularly among men, can help reduce excess mortality from unnatural causes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

We followed adolescents and adults living with HIV aged older than 15 years who enrolled in a South African private-sector HIV programme to examine adherence and viral non-suppression (viral load > 400 copies/mL) of participants with (20,743, 38%) and without (33,635, 62%) mental health diagnoses. Mental health diagnoses were associated with unfavourable adherence patterns. The risk of viral non-suppression was higher among patients with organic mental disorders [adjusted risk ratio (aRR) 1.55, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.22-1.96], substance use disorders (aRR 1.53, 95% CI 1.19-1.97), serious mental disorders (aRR 1.30, 95% CI 1.09-1.54), and depression (aRR 1.19, 95% CI 1.10-1.28) when compared with patients without mental health diagnoses. The risk of viral non-suppression was also higher among males, adolescents (15-19 years), and young adults (20-24 years). Our study highlights the need for psychosocial interventions to improve HIV treatment outcomes-particularly of adolescents and young adults-and supports strengthening mental health services in HIV treatment programmes., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: The treatment gap for mental health services is a growing public health concern. A lay-counselling service located at primary health care (PHC) level could potentially help to close the large treatment gap for common mental disorders in South Africa. The aim of this study was to understand multilevel factors contributing to implementation and potential dissemination of such a service for depression at PHC level., Methods: Process qualitative data of the lay-counselling service for patients with depressive symptoms was collected alongside a pragmatic randomized controlled trial evaluating a collaborative care model that included a lay-counselling service for patients with depressive symptoms. Semi-structured key informant interviews (SSI) were conducted with a purposive sample of PHC providers (lay-counsellors, nurse practitioners, operational managers), lay-counsellor supervisors, district and provincial managers, and patients in receipt of services. A total of 86 interviews were conducted. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) was used to guide data collection as well as Framework Analysis to determine barriers and facilitators for implementation and dissemination of the lay-counselling service., Results: Facilitators identified include supervision and support available for counsellors; person focused counselling approach; organizational integration of the counsellor within facilities. Barriers included lack of organizational support of the counselling service, including lack of counselling dedicated space; high counsellor turnover, resulting in a counsellor not available all the time; lack of an identified cadre to deliver the intervention in the system; and treatment of mental health conditions including counselling not included within mental health indicators., Conclusions: Several system level issues need to be addressed to promote integration and dissemination of lay-counselling services within PHC facilities in South Africa. Key system requirements are facility organizational readiness for improvement of integration of lay-counselling services; formal recognition of counselling services provided by lay counsellors as well as inclusion of lay counselling as a treatment modality within mental health treatment data element definitions and the need for diversification of the roles of psychologists to include training and supervision of lay counsellors was also emphasized., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: We tested the real-world effectiveness of a collaborative task-sharing model on depressive symptom reduction in hypertensive Primary Health Care (PHC) patients in South Africa., Method: A pragmatic parallel cluster randomised trial in 20 clinics in the Dr Kenneth Kaunda district, North West province. PHC clinics were stratified by sub-district and randomised in a 1:1 ratio. Control clinics received care as usual (CAU), involving referral to PHC doctors and/or mental health specialists. Intervention clinics received CAU plus enhanced mental health training and a lay counselling referral service. Participant inclusion criteria were ≥ 18 years old, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) score ≥ 9 and receiving hypertension medication. Primary superiority outcome was ≥ 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score at 6 months. Statistical analyses comprised mixed effects regression models and a non-inferiority analysis., Trial Registration Number: NCT02425124., Results: Between April 2015 and October 2015, 1043 participants were enrolled (504 intervention and 539 control); 82% were women; half were ≥ 55 years. At 6 and 12 months follow-up, 91% and 89% of participants were interviewed respectively. One control group participant committed suicide. There was no significant difference in the primary outcome between intervention (N=256/456) and control (N=232/492) groups (55.9% versus 50.9%; adjusted risk difference = -0.04 ([95% CI = -0.19; 0.11], p = 0.6). The difference in PHQ-9 scores was within the defined equivalence limits at 6 and 12 months for the non-inferiority analysis., Limitations: The trial was limited by low exposure to depression treatment by trial participants and by observed co-intervention in control clinics CONCLUSIONS: Incorporating lay counselling services within collaborative care models does not produce superior nor inferior outcomes to models with specialist only counselling services., Funding: This work was supported by the UK Department for International Development [201446] as well as the National Institute of Mental Health, United States of America, grant number 1R01MH100470-01. Graham Thornicroft is supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) South London at King's College London and King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: The scale-up of antiretroviral treatment (ART) programmes has seen HIV/AIDS transition to a chronic condition characterised by high rates of comorbidity with tuberculosis, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and mental health disorders. Depression is one such disorder that is associated with higher rates of non-adherence, progression to AIDS and greater mortality. Detection and treatment of comorbid depression is critical to achieve viral load suppression in more than 90% of those on ART and is in line with the recent 90-90-90 Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) targets. The CobALT trial aims to provide evidence on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of scalable interventions to reduce the treatment gap posed by the growing burden of depression among adults on lifelong ART., Methods: The study design is a pragmatic, parallel group, stratified, cluster randomised trial in 40 clinics across two rural districts of the North West Province of South Africa. The unit of randomisation is the clinic, with outcomes measured among 2000 patients on ART who screen positive for depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Control group clinics are implementing the South African Department of Health's Integrated Clinical Services Management model, which aims to reduce fragmentation of care in the context of rising multimorbidity, and which includes training in the Primary Care 101 (PC101) guide covering communicable diseases, NCDs, women's health and mental disorders. In intervention clinics, we supplemented this with training specifically in the mental health components of PC101 and clinical communications skills training to support nurse-led chronic care. We strengthened the referral pathways through the introduction of a clinic-based behavioural health counsellor equipped to provide manualised depression counselling (eight sessions, individual or group), as well as adherence counselling sessions (one session, individual). The co-primary patient outcomes are a reduction in PHQ-9 scores of at least 50% from baseline and viral load suppression rates measured at 6 and 12 months, respectively., Discussion: The trial will provide real-world effectiveness of case detection and collaborative care for depression including facility-based counselling on the mental and physical outcomes for people on lifelong ART in resource-constrained settings., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov ( NCT02407691 ) registered on 19 March 2015; Pan African Clinical Trials Registry ( 201504001078347 ) registered on 19/03/2015; South African National Clinical Trials Register (SANCTR) ( DOH-27-0515-5048 ) NHREC number 4048 issued on 21/04/2015.

Background: The high co-morbidity of mental disorders, particularly depression, with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), is concerning given the rising burden of NCDs globally, and the role depression plays in confounding prevention and treatment of NCDs. The objective of this randomised control trial (RCT) is to determine the real-world effectiveness of strengthened depression identification and management on depression outcomes in hypertensive patients attending primary health care (PHC) facilities in South Africa (SA)., Methods/design: The study design is a pragmatic, two-arm, parallel-cluster RCT, the unit of randomisation being the clinics, with outcomes being measured for individual participants. The 20 largest eligible clinics from one district in the North West Province are enrolled in the trial. Equal numbers of hypertensive patients (n = 50) identified as having depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) are enrolled from each clinic, making up a total of 1000 participants with 500 in each arm. The nurse clinicians in the control facilities receive the standard training in Primary Care 101 (PC101), a clinical decision support tool for integrated chronic care that includes guidelines for hypertension and depression care. Referral pathways available include referrals to PHC physicians, clinical or counselling psychologists and outpatient psychiatric and psychological services. In the intervention clinics, this training is supplemented with strengthened training in the depression components of PC101 as well as training in clinical communication skills for nurse-led chronic care. Referral pathways are strengthened through the introduction of a facility-based behavioural health counsellor, trained to provide structured manualised counselling for depression and adherence counselling for all chronic conditions. The primary outcome is defined as at least 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score measured at 6 months., Discussion: This trial should provide evidence of the real world effectiveness of strengtheneddepression identification and collaborative management on health outcomes of hypertensive patients withcomorbid depression attending PHC facilities in South Africa., Trial Registration: South African National Clinical Trial Register: SANCTR ( http://www.sanctr.gov.za/SAClinicalTrials ) (DOH-27-0916-5051). Registered on 9 April 2015. ClinicalTrials.gov : ID: NCT02425124 . Registered on 22 April 2015.

Background: In many low-income countries, care for patients with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and mental health conditions is provided by nurses. The benefits of nurse substitution and supplementation in NCD care in high-income settings are well recognised, but evidence from low- and middle-income countries is limited. Primary Care 101 (PC101) is a programme designed to support and expand nurses' role in NCD care, comprising educational outreach to nurses and a clinical management tool with enhanced prescribing provisions. We evaluated the effect of the programme on primary care nurses' capacity to manage NCDs., Methods and Findings: In a cluster randomised controlled trial design, 38 public sector primary care clinics in the Western Cape Province, South Africa, were randomised. Nurses in the intervention clinics were trained to use the PC101 management tool during educational outreach sessions delivered by health department trainers and were authorised to prescribe an expanded range of drugs for several NCDs. Control clinics continued use of the Practical Approach to Lung Health and HIV/AIDS in South Africa (PALSA PLUS) management tool and usual training. Patients attending these clinics with one or more of hypertension (3,227), diabetes (1,842), chronic respiratory disease (1,157) or who screened positive for depression (2,466), totalling 4,393 patients, were enrolled between 28 March 2011 and 10 November 2011. Primary outcomes were treatment intensification in the hypertension, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease cohorts, defined as the proportion of patients in whom treatment was escalated during follow-up over 14 mo, and case detection in the depression cohort. Primary outcome data were analysed for 2,110 (97%) intervention and 2,170 (97%) control group patients. Treatment intensification rates in intervention clinics were not superior to those in the control clinics (hypertension: 44% in the intervention group versus 40% in the control group, risk ratio [RR] 1.08 [95% CI 0.94 to 1.24; p = 0.252]; diabetes: 57% versus 50%, RR 1.10 [0.97 to 1.24; p = 0.126]; chronic respiratory disease: 14% versus 12%, RR 1.08 [0.75 to 1.55; p = 0.674]), nor was case detection of depression (18% versus 24%, RR 0.76 [0.53 to 1.10; p = 0.142]). No adverse effects of the nurses' expanded scope of practice were observed. Limitations of the study include dependence on self-reported diagnoses for inclusion in the patient cohorts, limited data on uptake of PC101 by users, reliance on process outcomes, and insufficient resources to measure important health outcomes, such as HbA1c, at follow-up., Conclusions: Educational outreach to primary care nurses to train them in the use of a management tool involving an expanded role in managing NCDs was feasible and safe but was not associated with treatment intensification or improved case detection for index diseases. This notwithstanding, the intervention, with adjustments to improve its effectiveness, has been adopted for implementation in primary care clinics throughout South Africa., Trial Registration: The trial is registered with Current Controlled Trials (ISRCTN20283604)., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Background: Socioeconomic predictors and consequences of depression and its treatment were investigated in 4393 adults with specified non-communicable diseases attending 38 public sector primary care clinics in the Eden and Overberg districts of the Western Cape, South Africa., Methods: Participants were interviewed at baseline in 2011 and 14 months later, as part of a randomised controlled trial of a guideline-based intervention to improve diagnosis and management of chronic diseases. The 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10) was used to assess depression symptoms, with higher scores representing more depressed mood., Results: Higher CESD-10 scores at baseline were independently associated with being less educated (p = 0.004) and having lower income (p = 0.003). CESD-10 scores at follow-up were higher in participants with less education (p = 0.010) or receiving welfare grants (p = 0.007) independent of their baseline scores. Participants with CESD-10 scores of ten or more at baseline (56 % of all participants) had 25 % higher odds of being unemployed at follow-up (p = 0.016), independently of baseline CESD-10 score and treatment status. Among participants with baseline CESD-10 scores of ten or more, antidepressant medication at baseline was independently more likely in participants who had more education (p = 0.002), higher income (p < 0.001), or were unemployed (p = 0.001). Antidepressant medication at follow up was independently more likely in participants with higher income (p = 0.023), and in clinics with better access to pharmacists (p = 0.053) and off-site drug delivery (p = 0.013)., Conclusions: Socioeconomic disadvantage appears to be both a cause and consequence of depression, and may also be a barrier to treatment. There are opportunities for improving the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of depression in primary care in inequitable middle income countries like South Africa., Trial Registration: The trial is registered with Current Controlled Trials ( ISRCTN20283604 ).

One of the biggest problems in global health is the lack of well trained and supported health workers in less developed settings. In many rural areas there are no physicians, and it is important to find ways to support and empower nurses and other health workers. The Knowledge Translation Unit of the University of Cape Town Lung Institute has spent 14 years developing a series of innovative packages to support and empower nurses and other health workers. PACK (Practical Approach to Care Kit) Adult comprises policy-based and evidence-informed guidelines; onsite, team and case-based training; non-physician prescribing; and a cascade system of scaling up. A series of randomised trials has shown the effectiveness of the packages, and methods are now being developed to respond cost-effectively and sustainably to global demand for implementing PACK Adult. Global health would probably benefit from less time and money spent developing new innovations and more spent on finding ways to spread those we already have.

Background: South Africa (SA) is facing a heavy burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Few studies address multimorbidity, control and treatment of NCDs in patients attending primary healthcare (PHC) clinics., Objectives: To describe multimorbidity, related risk factors, disease severity and treatment status of patients with four important NCDs attending public sector PHC clinics in two districts in SA., Methods: A cross-sectional sample of patients completed baseline data collection for a randomised controlled trial of a health systems intervention. The study population comprised adults attending PHC clinics in the Eden and Overberg districts of the Western Cape in 2011. Four subgroups of patients were identified: hypertension, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease and depression. A total of 4 393 participants enrolled from 38 clinics completed a baseline structured questionnaire and had measurements taken. Prescription data were recorded., Results: Of participants with hypertension, diabetes, respiratory disease and depression, 80%, 92%, 88% and 80%, respectively, had at least one of the other three conditions. There were low levels of control and treatment: 59% of participants with hypertension had a blood pressure ≥140/90 mmHg, the mean haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) value in participants with diabetes was 9%, 12% of participants in the depression group were prescribed an antidepressant at a therapeutic dose, and 48% of respiratory participants were prescribed a b2-agonist and 34% an inhaled corticosteroid., Conclusion: Considerable multimorbidity and unmet treatment needs exist among patients with NCDs attending public sector PHC clinics. Improved strategies are required for diagnosing and managing NCDs in this sector.