The Importance of Up-to-Date Health Facility Databases in Sub-Saharan Africa

Strategic Insights -

A lack of reliable information about health facilities across sub-Saharan Africa became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic, hindering emergency care needs. To address this, researchers Peter Macharia and Emelda Okiro examine the importance of open health facility databases in their recent study. These databases are comprehensive lists of health facilities, including information on location, services offered, capacity, and infrastructure. The ideal method of compiling this list is through a census, but this is a resource-intensive process. Many countries have compiled lists from existing incomplete ones, but these are often not open to stakeholders.

Key Takeaways:

  • Open health facility databases are essential for sub-national, national, and continental health objectives, including emergency responses, vaccine campaigns, and disease surveillance systems.
  • These lists can serve the needs of individuals and communities by providing a choice of alternatives to health seekers and guiding decisions on where to place community health workers.
  • Facility listings are crucial for planning vaccination campaigns, tailoring health services to specific needs, and identifying vulnerable populations at risk of emerging pathogens.
  • Without these lists, healthcare planning becomes inefficient, resulting in duplicate facility lists, misallocation of resources, and waste.
  • Partnerships between stakeholders, including health ministries, donors, implementing partners, and research institutions, are necessary to compile and maintain comprehensive health facility lists.
  • Creating and maintaining a proper list requires significant investment, expertise, and resources, but is essential for a coordinated health system response during pandemics and outbreaks.

Statistics:

  • Between 2010 and 2016, six government departments partnered with development organisations in Nigeria, resulting in ten lists of health facilities.
  • In Tanzania, over 10 different health facility lists existed in 2009.
  • In Kenya, a comprehensive list of health facilities was compiled through a census in 2023.
  • According to Peter Macharia, open access makes health facility lists more complete, reliable, and useful.

Sources:

  • The Conversation -- Africa -- By Peter M Macharia, Senior postdoctoral research fellow, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp
  • Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek- Belgium (FWO, number 1201925N) for Peter Macharia's Senior Postdoctoral Fellowship
  • Wellcome Trust through a Wellcome Trust Senior Fellowship (#224272) for Emelda Okiro's research
  • The conversation - https://theconversation.com/how-far-is-your-closest-hospital-or-clinic-public-health-researchers-explain-why-africa-needs-up-to-date-health-facility-databases-259190
  • Peter Macharia's study co-authored with Emelda Okiro, no reference number provided.