JDPC, Stakeholders Take PHC Sensitisation to Ibadan Market, Uncover Gaps, Poor Patronage
By: Femi Ojo
The Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), Ibadan, has taken its sensitisation campaign on Primary Health Care (PHC) services to Odo Ona Kekere Market in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State as part of efforts to boost residents confidence in primary healthcare services.
The outreach, organised under the Strengthening Accountability and Resilience in Knowledge (SPARK) project, funded by the International Budget Partnership (IBP), was aimed at encouraging residents, particularly pregnant women and nursing mothers, to patronise PHC facilities.
Mr Jide Bamgbose, Head of Democracy and Governance Programme, JDPC, said the market outreach was adopted to bridge the communication gap between healthcare providers and residents at the grassroots.
Bamgbose said misconceptions about the availability of personnel, drugs and other services at PHCs had contributed to low patronage.
“We are doing this to promote increased participation and improve patronage of primary healthcare because we noticed that the turnout is still not impressive,” he said.
According to him, taking the campaign to the market would enable the organisation to reach more people, particularly women of childbearing age.
Before the sensitisation, the JDPC team, alongside health champions from the Ward Development Committee (WDC), paid a courtesy visit to the market chairman, Oloye Isiaka Akinbola.
Akinbola commended the initiative and pledged to support efforts to sensitise traders on the need to utilise public healthcare facilities.
Mrs Blessing Shiyanbola, Local Government Health Educator, said despite interventions, including infrastructure upgrades and staff deployment by the Oyo State Government, some residents still held outdated perceptions about PHCs.
She said the facilities had departments and services designed to address maternal and child health needs, among other health challenges.
Similarly, Mr Dauda Shittu, State Director of Marketing, Oyo State Health Insurance Agency (OYSHIA), urged residents to enrol in the state health insurance scheme.
Shittu said health insurance could reduce the financial burden of accessing healthcare and improve residents’ ability to obtain medical services when needed.
However, interactions with traders and residents during the outreach revealed concerns that could undermine efforts to improve PHC patronage.
Some participants complained about the attitude of health workers, the cost of services and drugs, as well as limited access to healthcare services outside regular operating hours.
A pregnant woman who spoke on condition of anonymity said an unpleasant experience at a PHC near the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) made her seek care from an auxiliary nurse.
“I initially wanted to do antenatal there, but the nurse said I should go to Molete to do a scan. Do you know how far Molete is from CRIN?” she asked.
Asked whether she would prefer to deliver at the PHC, she said she would continue to rely on her family nurse as she is almost due for delivery.
“If I go now, they will not allow me. I will go to my family nurse; that’s where I gave birth to my first child,” she said.
A post-outreach inspection of the Odo Ona Kekere PHC, located about a kilometre from the market, also revealed infrastructure challenges despite the facility’s previous facelift.
The facility currently has only two functional beds, according to the inspection, potentially limiting its capacity to manage patients requiring observation or admission.
Mrs Adeola Ojo, WDC Chairman of the facility, said inadequate space and the cost of drugs had affected service delivery and patronage.
“This place is always congested during immunisation sessions. We don’t have enough benches for sitting. Nursing mothers who come for immunisation sometimes sit on the floor while they wait,” she said.
Ojo appealed to the state government and the Primary Health Care Board to address the facility’s infrastructure and equipment needs.
Alhaja Oladimeji Oluwafunmilola, Lead Health Champion for Oluyole Local Government Area, said the outreach helped to address residents’ concerns and educate them on how to channel complaints when accessing healthcare services.
She, however, stressed the need for sustained engagement among communities, health authorities and other stakeholders to improve healthcare delivery.
JDPC said feedback, complaints and infrastructure gaps identified during the exercise would be documented and escalated to relevant government agencies for appropriate action.
