Self-management recommendations for sickle cell disease: A Ghanaian health professionals' perspective

Objective: To describe self-management recommendations for sickle cell disease (SCD) care among health professionals who manage SCD in Ghana. Method: Nine health care professionals (nurses, doctors, and physician assistants) who work in SCD were interviewed. The semistructured interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using the qualitative content analysis method. Self-management recommendations were conceptualised as preventive health, self-monitoring, self-diagnosis, self-treatment, and self-evaluation. Results: Preventive health recommendations were the commonest, where the professionals described similar topics including avoidance of cold temperature, frequent oral hydration, and healthy nutrition. Self-monitoring recommendations included regular checks for pallor, urine colour, and splenic enlargement. Self-diagnosis recommendations were captured as warning signs and included pain, fever, unusual feelings, and enlarged spleen. Pain and fever management were the focus of most self-treatment advice, and there were some self-treatment recommendations for dactylitis, anaemia, and priapism. There was considerable variation in the strategies recommended for the management of individual SCD-related problems. Conclusion: Ghanaian health professionals involved in SCD care provide limited and inconsistent self-management recommendations. There is a need for the development of SCD standards and guidelines that support effective self-management. Health professionals working in SCD require continuing education in self-management.