A Scoping Review of Supply Chain Management Systems for Point of Care Diagnostic Services: Optimising COVID-19 Testing Capacity in Resource-Limited Settings

Kuhlula Maluleke; Alfred Musekiwa; Kabelo Kgarosi; Emily Mac Gregor; Thobeka Dlangalala; Sphamandla Nkambule; Tivani Mashamba-Thompson

doi:10.3390/diagnostics11122299

A Scoping Review of Supply Chain Management Systems for Point of Care Diagnostic Services: Optimising COVID-19 Testing Capacity in Resource-Limited Settings

Diagnostics (Basel). 2021 Dec 8;11(12):2299. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics11122299.

Authors

Kuhlula Maluleke¹, Alfred Musekiwa¹, Kabelo Kgarosi², Emily Mac Gregor³, Thobeka Dlangalala¹, Sphamandla Nkambule⁴, Tivani Mashamba-Thompson⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Health Systems and Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0084, South Africa.
² Department of Library Services, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0084, South Africa.
³ School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0084, South Africa.
⁴ Discipline of Public Health Medicine, School of Nursing and Public Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4000, South Africa.
⁵ Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0084, South Africa.

Abstract

Background: Point of care (POC) testing has enabled rapid coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) diagnosis in resource-limited settings with limited laboratory infrastructure and high disease burden. However, the accessibility of the tests is not optimal in these settings. This scoping review mapped evidence on supply chain management (SCM) systems for POC diagnostic services to reveal evidence that can help guide future research and inform the improved implementation of SARS-CoV-2 POC diagnostics in resource-limited settings.

Methodology: This scoping review was guided by an adapted version of the Arksey and O'Malley methodological framework. We searched the following electronic databases: Medline Ovid, Medline EBSCO, Scopus, PubMed, PsychInfo, Web of Science and EBSCOHost. We also searched grey literature in the form of dissertations/theses, conference proceedings, websites of international organisations such as the World Health Organisation and government reports. A search summary table was used to test the efficacy of the search strategy. The quality of the included studies was appraised using the mixed method appraisal tool (MMAT) version 2018.

Results: We retrieved 1206 articles (databases n = 1192, grey literature n = 14). Of these, 31 articles were included following abstract and full-text screening. Fifteen were primary studies conducted in LMICs, and 16 were reviews. The following themes emerged from the included articles: availability and accessibility of POC diagnostic services; reasons for stockouts of POC diagnostic tests (procurement, storage, distribution, inventory management and quality assurance) and human resources capacity in POC diagnostic services. Of the 31 eligible articles, 15 underwent methodological quality appraisal with scores between 90% and 100%.

Conclusions: Our findings revealed limited published research on SCM systems for POC diagnostic services globally. We recommend primary studies aimed at investigating the barriers and enablers of SCM systems for POC diagnostic services for highly infectious pathogens such SARS-CoV-2 in high disease-burdened settings with limited laboratory infrastructures.

Keywords: COVID-19; point of care diagnostic services; resource-limited settings; supply chain management.

Publication types

Review