RBF transforms healthcare system in Matabeleland region

CHENGETAI MURIMWA

 

The Result Based Financing (RBF) programme, which was launched by the Government of Zimbabwe in collaboration with the World Bank and Cordaid Zimbabwe, is modernizing the healthcare system in the Matabeleland region, Business Times can report.

The programme was started in 2011 with the goal of assisting the Ministry of Health and Child Care in its initiatives to expand access to high-quality medical care.

Dr. Andrew Muse, the provincial medical director for Matabeleland South, attested to the transformation.

“We have the core financing that comes through the Ministry of Health and Treasury but in addition to that we have a finance mechanism that has been put in place to improve and incentivise health care workers to perform, so its finance that is linked to performance,” Dr Muza told Business Times.

He added: “We saw improvements once we began using the financing model. It made health systems stronger. We were able to make a great deal of progress. In our province, there are facilities that have created mother’s waiting shelters for expectant mothers, and some hospitals have renovated their waste management systems.”

Dr Muza also said some had been able to paint their clinics and hospitals, while others had been able to purchase new equipment for their medical facilities.

Dr. Joe Nganunu, the acting district medical officer, concurred saying the RBF has also led to the creation of synergies with community members.

He claimed that the community contributed to the building of the Izimnyama Clinic, which is regarded as a model facility in the Mangwe district.

“Izimnyama Clinic has come in handy as it has helped in bridging the gap in health provision in the district. Before the construction of the clinic villagers had to travel a distance of about 40 kilometres to the nearest health facility. We were having the elderly walking long distances to seek health care services,” Dr Nganunu said.

The RBF funds, according to Mathias Sibanda, the head of Mzila Ward Four Village, assisted in building a state of the art  clinic in the outlying community.

“We now have a clinic nearby and medicine is readily available and this is all through the RBF funding. Before the construction of this clinic, we used to travel to Plumtree to access health services and expecting mothers no longer have to travel long distances for antenatal care,” Sibanda said.

Business Times can also report that the RBF funding is not only benefitting the rural communities but also underprivileged pregnant women in the city of Bulawayo through the Urban Voucher System.

The urban voucher system enables vulnerable women to access maternal health care to reduce maternal and neonatal child deaths. These women receive health care under the RBF programme by buying a voucher for a dollar to access maternal health services.

The Director of Health Services for Bulawayo City Council, Dr Edwin Sibanda, confirmed that the RBF programme is being used by a total of 14 clinics throughout Bulawayo. He claimed that the program offers higher-quality and more effective service delivery in the clinics run by the municipality.

“It has led to improvement of infrastructure in the council-run clinics as well as provision of medicines and staff working at clinics also receive incentives,” Dr Sibanda told Business Times.

The RBF Program has also benefited Mpilo Central Hospital, the largest referral facility in the Southern Region.

The maternity wing at the hospital faced resource issues, but the arrival of the RBF has eased the challenges they were facing, according to Phineas Sithole, the principal nursing officer at Mpilo Central.

“Most patients that come to the hospital are referral cases and we had difficulties in having resources available so that we can intervene, we ended up asking relatives to assist in buying some of the medicines needed,” Sithole said.

“(But), the RBF Programme is empowering us to identify what are our needs in terms of service provision to pregnant women and then we can come up with our purchase plan quarterly.”

According to Dr. Admire Kuretu, the provincial medical director for Matabeleland North, the vast province is characterized by a  poor road network  system and an unpredictable transportation system. He claimed that hospitals like Binga District Hospital and Sianzundu Clinic had benefited from RBF funds. He  said that the renovation of hospital facilities and the installation of piped water have given the health care facilities access to clean water.

 

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