A scoping review on barriers to case management of neonatal pneumonia in India

Abstract Background Neonatal pneumonia is one of the leading factors contributing to neonatal mortality. The objective of this review was to identify the barriers associated with case management of neonatal pneumonia in India by conducting a scoping review. Methods Nine databases (PubMed, ProQuest, Ovid Medline, CINAHL, Web of Science, EMBASE, IndMED, SCOPUS and WHOLIS) were searched to identify relevant studies in India. The population of interest were neonates. Outcome of interest was barriers associated with case management of neonatal pneumonia. Data was charted and reported in accordance with the ‘guidance for conducting systematic scoping reviews'. Results From 5942 citations screened, 244 articles underwent full text screening and two studies with qualitative information met the eligibility criteria. Barriers were classified as patient-related, caregiver-related and healthcare delivery system-related. Delay in seeking care was due to spiritual healers being first point of contact in addition to traditional and home remedies tried by mothers at home and inaccessible healthcare mostly owing to healthcare delivery system were some of the major barriers associated with case management of neonatal pneumonia. Conclusion This scoping review concludes that there is a paucity of studies on neonatal pneumonia in India particularly with respect to barriers to case management and that many of the barriers described here are applicable to a broad range of neonatal disease conditions which occur in the community and not just specific to neonatal pneumonia.