The Primary Health Care (PHC) system is designed to meet more than 70 percent of an individual’s healthcare needs. What then happens to the individual who can’t access primary healthcare? This is the scenario for the people of Dappo, a rural community in Kontagora Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State, who do not have ready access to healthcare as the PHC in the community can’t meet the health care needs of the community members.
According to Zakiyya Aliyu, the officer in charge of the PHC, the facility lacks adequate manpower, which affects optimal healthcare delivery. The building is also in a bad state of disrepair and there is neither a labor room nor a laboratory, meaning they cannot conduct tests or take delivery. “Even essential drugs we don’t have. We don’t receive them and sometimes the clients must go to other towns to buy medications,” she said, adding that the facility also has no functional toilet and no source of clean water. As such, health workers and patients depend on the goodwill of neighbours willing to share their toilet facilities.
“Our people want to access care from the health facility but due to its condition they cannot. With your own money you can’t have access to good quality healthcare, that’s why they prefer to go to health facilities in Kontagora for treatment,” Mohammed Audu, a community member lamented.
Dappo community members want to be able to access quality healthcare with ease. They are therefore asking for,
1. A complete rehabilitation of Dappo PHC
2. Government to recruit and deploy more health workers to the facility
3. Government to construct and equip a labor room and laboratory
4. Government to provide essential medications
5. Government to provide a source of clean water and gender equitable toilet facilities.