Analysing the challenges of decentralized health services in Namibia: A case study of Erongo Region

Abstract

The Namibian Government has aimed at creating a needs-based and cost-effective health care system. The means to carry out this aim has been to decentralize the health sector in order to increase lower-level responsibility, accountability, and participation. This research paper set out to analyse the decentralised health care services in Namibia, as perceived by patients and hospital staff in selected hospitals in the Erongo Region. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research methods. The quantitative methods were used to establish the perceived roles, functions and impact of the decentralisation policy on staff and patients. Qualitative methods were used to assess challenges faced by patients. The population for this study was based on the selected number of towns in the study area. The study used a purposive non-probability sampling method. Moreover, the study targeted 30 respondents who were purposefully selected from different towns in the Erongo Region. The findings of this study indicate that: Generally, the number of cases referred to Walvis Bay and Swakopmund hospitals from the district hospitals have decreased, there are some cases referred to the district hospital which can effectively be handled at the different health centres, and efficiency of service delivery is perceived by both staff and patients to have improved at the general hospitals.