Primary health care in northwest Somalia
Bentley, C.
Implementing primary health care experiences since Alma Ata: 65-84
1990
Document Number: 377270
A primary health care (PHC) project in northern Somalia is described, and the implications of implementing such a project in a peripheral area without an existing basic health service structure are outlined and analysed. With conventional health services in a state of almost complete collapse except in the regional capital, the health needs of the rural population had to be addressed from scratch. Development of the project was made possible only by maintaining a very flexible approach, and by learning through doing. The target group included both nomadic and settled peoples, which implied that the project structure and activities required careful tailoring to specific problems and possibilities. The paper is an attempt to review the project's strategies and achievements and to identify some of the important lessons learned along the way. Despite the continued existence of certain problems and the considerable dependence on outside inputs, particularly drugs, fuel and transport, it is seen that the project has succeeded in establishing an effective health service infrastructure which is largely managed by national staff and has won over the support of local communities who now contribute to improving their own health status.