Strengthening Capacities of Ward Development Committees to Promote Health in Nigeria: A Case Study of Osun State

Abstract

Unsatisfactory health indices characterize Osun State Nigeria Primary Health Care facilities and poor operational conditions. Residents patronize private health facilities with attendant payment of huge out-of-pocket medical bills. Implementation of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), a mechanism to increase access to quality health care for all its citizens initiated by the state government, commenced in 2018. The study sought to determine the extent to which capacity building/training of Ward development committees (WDC) in BHCPF supported PHCs has contributed to the provision of quality health services in the BHCPF supported facilities. The study was qualitative in design and used three focus group discussions held in three BHCPF implementing LGAs with thirty-five (27males, 8 females) consenting trained WDC members. Prior to the BHCPF training, the majority of the WDCs were not actively involved in the management of their PHCs, as political appointees and were unclear about their roles and responsibilities to the health facilities in their wards. After the training, most of the trained WDCs engaged with their PHC staff to debrief, review the quality improvement plans for their health facilities, identified immediate needs to address, approached influential people in the community, and mobilized local resources to address identified gaps. Electricity and water supply were restored in most of the facilities, hospital beds and basic equipment for were procured for PHCs, building, and equipping of the laboratory were completed. Building the capacity of the WDC on their roles and responsibilities strengthened them to contribute to the provision of quality health services in their communities. Keywords: Access, capacity building, quality improvement, Universal Health Coverage, Ward development committees.