Djougou - Health Facilities

Health Facilities

Djougou has two major public health centers and one private hospital. Each of these facilities is run by at least one physician; the private hospital has at least two on duty at any given time. There are also several private facilities run by nurses and midwives which perform births and do maternal and child healthcare specifically. There is also a fixed HIV testing and counseling center on the campus of the regional health center that does testing and HIV counseling on Wednesdays. As the majority of health personnel are government employees, many health workers are in Djougou by contractual obligation for a number of years; and few see it as an ideal post. Many would prefer to work down south, specifically in Cotonou, and many have left family behind in the south and plan to return as soon as possible. This may contribute to issues of motivation and work ethic.

Both the public health centers and private hospital keep regular hours, and supplies are generally available when needed. Health workers cited that a major problem is getting people to come to the health center—once they are there adequate care can usually be provided. Transportation to the health centers is particularly challenging, particularly for members of smaller villages and communities surrounding the city whose health centers do not offer comprehensive care. Mosquito nets are available at the health centers for children under 5 and pregnant women, and can also be purchased at a subsidized price from the pharmacy and other local vendors. Condoms are also widely available. Health facilities are kept fairly clean—each has running water and latrines that are far removed from areas of patient care. Hazardous waste material is separated from regular trash and disposed of separately. Most patients at the health center are pregnant women and children under 5. Pregnant women come to the health center for prenatal consultations, births, or if they suspect they have malaria. Children under 5 are brought for pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria. Health workers agree that malnutrition is a problem among many children in Djougou, but that mothers rarely identify this as the reason for bringing their children to the health center. The health centers are much busier during malaria season—patient loads can more than double during this time, and one can see men and young adults at the clinic as well. The health centers each have an ambulance to provide emergency transportation. This is usually done in the case of labor complications in women who choose to give birth at home or in a smaller birthing facility. However, use of the ambulance is rare—in most cases family members will transport even patients in crisis situations themselves.

There is a relatively quiet presence of traditional healers in Djougou. These gueriseurs give out powders and prayers in their homes for headaches and other simple maladies and they don't appear to have any formal training. One healer visited did not speak French and charged a small fee. The people of Djougou are relatively well educated and seem to know enough to be slightly embarrassed by visiting such healers. For small issues, however, it seems to be easier, cheaper, and more familiar than going to the centre de santé and does not appear to cause any problems or restrict utilization of western medicine when time and money permit.