Babban Rami, a rural community in Mashegu Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State, has a Primary Health Centre (PHC) that provides healthcare services to the community members and other surrounding settlements. However, the PHC is too small to meet the health needs of the teeming population in its catchment area.
According to Mohammed Bello, the officer in charge of the facility, the PHC is so small, it doesn’t have a delivery room. The health workers in the facility used funds from the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) to carve out a delivery room from a ward in the PHC. Bello also said that the PHC has a lot of equipment, but because they do not have a lab, they are forced to set up them up in his office. Consequently, all lab tests are carried out in his office, which he says is not healthy for the health workers and even the patients.
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services are poor at the PHC as they don’t have any source of water and until recently, no toilet. But funds from the BHCPF were also used to construct a toilet for the patients and the health workers. Although this has brought them some relief, Bello said because the toilet is outside the facility, it is not convenient for patients on admission as they must walk outside to ease themselves. He called on Magama LGA officials and the Niger State government to expand the PHC and construct toilet facilities inside. Also, the health facility doesn’t have a fence which exposes both patients and health workers to insecurity.
Staff of Babban Rami PHC have done the best they can and must be commended for utilising the BHCPF to address some of the facility’s needs. Mashegu LGA and the Niger State government should play their part by,
- Expanding Babban Rami PHC
- Constructing inhouse, gender equitable toilet facilities
- Constructing a fence for the health facility
- Making available a portable water source at the health facility
- Constructing a laboratory for the health facility.