Chinedum Treasure
The Strengthening Public Accountability for Result and Knowledge, (SPARK II) advocacy team has urged the Anambra State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (ASPHCDA) to address critical gaps in staffing, infrastructure, medicines, referrals and accountability affecting primary healthcare delivery across the state.
The team made the call during an advocacy engagement with the Executive Secretary of ASPHCDA, Dr. Chizoba Ezeasor, where it presented community-level findings on challenges affecting access to and quality of primary healthcare services.
Presenting the findings, the Executive Director of the Social and Integral Development Centre (SIDEC), Ugochi Ehiahuruike, identified shortages of nurses, midwives and community health workers as some of the major challenges documented by the project.
She also highlighted delays in attending to patients, poor attitudes by some health workers, inadequate medicines and equipment, infrastructure deficits and limited accessibility of some facilities to persons with disabilities.
The team further raised concerns about community participation and accountability in the implementation of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
The SPARK II Programme Manager at Justice Development and Peace Caritas (JDPC), Nnewi, Onyekachi Ololo, drew attention to weaknesses in the referral pathway between Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) and primary healthcare centres.
Ololo said the SPARK II team was committed to working with the government to translate evidence gathered from communities into concrete action, particularly in the areas of health workforce, infrastructure, accountability, referrals and patient-centred care.
He said the broader objective was to support the development of primary healthcare centres that were adequately staffed, accessible, responsive and accountable to the communities they served.
Also presenting during the engagement, Ikechukwu Nwabueze of Civil Rights Concern (CRC) introduced the Patients Feedback Form developed by the project.
According to him, the tool would enable patients to assess the quality of services received at primary healthcare facilities and provide feedback that could be used to improve service delivery.
The team also presented a TBA-PHC Referral Pathway Form designed to strengthen linkages between Traditional Birth Attendants and primary healthcare facilities.
The SPARK II team urged ASPHCDA to adopt and institutionalise the initiatives to sustain gains made through various health interventions in the state.
Responding to the findings, Ezeasor committed the agency to supporting the recruitment of additional health workers to address identified staffing gaps and revitalising primary healthcare centres where service-delivery challenges had been documented.
She also pledged to work more closely with the SPARK II team to strengthen accountability, community participation and service delivery at primary healthcare facilities.
On the BHCPF, the Executive Secretary committed to involving the SPARK II team in its implementation and monitoring processes to help ensure that the fund delivers its intended benefits to communities.
Ezeasor also expressed readiness to make inputs into the Patients Feedback Tool developed by the team for assessing respectful and patient-centred care, with a view to considering its adoption as a working document for the state.
On the role of Traditional Birth Attendants in the referral system, Ezeasor requested the SPARK II team to assist in compiling a comprehensive list of TBAs across Anambra State.
She said the information would support further engagement with the Ministry of Health and facilitate the development of a coordinating group for TBAs.
The Executive Secretary expressed regret that the advocacy engagement had not taken place earlier, stressing the importance of the findings presented by the SPARK II team.
As part of the next phase of the initiative, the SPARK project will train 50 Ward Development Committees (WDCs) and 24 Officers-in-Charge (OICs), in collaboration with ASPHCDA, on the referral pathway.
The training is expected to strengthen communication among communities, health facilities and the agency, while improving referral coordination and mechanisms for receiving and addressing complaints.
The engagement is expected to deepen collaboration among government, civil society organisations and communities in addressing persistent challenges affecting primary healthcare delivery in Anambra State.
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