Briefing Paper

Shortage in Health Workforce: Experiences of Primary Health Care Service Providers in Delta State Recommendations for Improvement

This policy brief outlines some of the actions that should be taken to enhance the health workforce in primary health centres located in rural areas of Delta State for the attention of the Delta State government and other providers of primary health care in the state. Achieving
community participation in health service delivery in resource-limited but a high disease burden setting as it is in the rural areas of Delta State is not a simple task. In many parts of the rural areas of the state the perception of the general population is often that of a grossly
inefficient formal health sector that has simply failed to deliver. Community members, additionally, may seek remuneration for participation in health service delivery, a stance that is not often sustainable in poorly resourced rural communities as it is in Delta State. Furthermore, health service personnel may not be willing to involve laypersons in the execution of health programmes, an act that they may view as a dilution of their own expertise.