Where We Work

Healthcare in rural Zambia

With our base in Livingstone, and our office in Sesheke, On Call Africa currently works in five rural health facilities in Zambia’s Southern Province and five rural healthcare facilities in Western Province. We partnered with the District Health Offices in Zimba, Kazungula, Sesheke and Mwandi District to identify the localities which would most benefit from our services, and worked with the the facility staff and communities to co-design programmes.

Zambia is currently ranked 141 of 187 countries on the Human Development Index, making it one of the world’s least developed countries. It has been particularly badly affected by the HIV epidemic – the prevalence rate was 12.5% in 2013 – and also experiences high rates of tuberculosis, malaria and malnutrition.

A lady using a water pump
On Call Africa Community
On Call Africa Community

A large and geographically dispersed population means only half of Zambians living in rural areas have medical facilities within 5km, and poor roads and a long rainy season make these few facilities even harder to reach. A national healthcare workforce crisis means that health worker density in rural Zambia is 12.2 per 10,000 compared with 22.8 minimum target set by WHO in order to achieve Universal Health Coverage.

In rural Southern Zambia many people lack access to basic healthcare, and there is poor health literacy, and poor access to amenities and services that promote health in remote communities.

“We keep seeing issues such as poor access to health care, health literacy, and poor access to the amenities that promote health. These issues can be devastating to rural communities, and to their ability to progress. Health care is a basic human right, and a necessity for development. On Call Africa is strengthening rural health care, bringing about long-term change”.

Ben Margetts, CEO, On Call Africa.

Rural Health Facilities in Zambia

In 2010 On Call Africa consulted with the Ministry of Health on the area with the highest need for our work. After being directed to Southern Province, we worked closely with the Provincial Health Office to identify Districts that were in most need of support. Working with those districts (Zimba and Kazungula) we identified three Rural Health Facilities in need of capacity building, and struggling to reach all communities within their catchment area. Using clinical data, and in consultation with Rural Health Facility staff and village leaders we identified three communities attached to each Rural Health Facility to focus our efforts and support.

On Call Africa continue to use the same consultative process when planning our expansion, which has led to us delivering work new Districts in Western Province, and expansion into new facilities within partner Districts. As part of our new strategy we now aim to support quality improvements at our partner facilities, and in all communities within their catchment area.

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