Building a Resilient Health System: Lessons from Northern Nigeria

The aim of this paper is to address building resilient health systems in the context of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa

From:
Department for International Development
Published
1 January 2015
Country:
Nigeria
Document Type:
Working Paper
Theme:
Health
Authors:
McKenzie, A., Sokpo, E., Abdulwahab, A., Mecaskey, J. W.

Abstract

The overarching aim of this paper is to address the issue of building resilient health systems in the context of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa which has brought renewed attention to this challenge. The paper highlights insight gained from two decades work creating resilient health systems in Nigeria - in Northern Nigeria in particular. In highlighting how the “simple” basics of outbreak control tie into larger, complex adaptive systems, this paper summarises key learning from the Nigerian experience as a basis for suggesting both how such outbreaks can be averted in the future and how sustainable development goals around eliminating excess mortality and improving health equity can be realised in practice.

Building resilient health systems requires:

  • a set of interventions that cover all the six (plus 1) health systems strengthening (HSS) building blocks;
  • resources (financial and human) that can flexibly respond to challenges and opportunities;
  • investment over a long period of time; and
  • a methodology that combines an appropriate and ongoing engagement approach, integrating governance reform with systems strengthening and building policy-maker and community support for systems strengthening

In many situations HSS interventions only address one or more of the building blocks and their results tend to be short-lived, because different elements of the system are integrally inter-connected and inter-dependent. For sustainability and impact, whole systems need to be addressed.

Based on the experience from Nigeria and other contexts, key steps that should be taken to build resilient health systems include:

  • Ongoing policy dialogue to build political commitment from affected country governments and international organisations and governments
  • Development of comprehensive and realistic plans to build health systems that are resilient to anticipated shocks and disruptions in the affected countries
  • Reorganisation of health services to reduce fragmentation
  • Development and implementation of a minimum service package approach
  • Mobilisation of experienced technical assistance to build the needed resilient health systems
  • Strengthening specific components of all six (plus one) HSS building blocks
  • Agreement on joint review and monitoring systems to promote accountability and transparency.

Thus, in building the health system in post Ebola West Africa, experience in the fragile circumstances of Northern Nigeria and South Sudan point to the importance of systems thinking even before the epidemic has abated. Thinking deliberately about how the health system in these countries might behave, given the complex adaptive systems analysis, should inform activities to address the epidemic and lay the foundation for post epidemic health systems strengthening.

Citation

McKenzie, A.; Abdulwahab, A.; Sokpo, E.; Mecaskey, J. W. Building a Resilient Health System: Lessons from Northern Nigeria. IDS Working Paper 454. Institute of Development Studies., Brighton, UK (2015) ISBN 978-1-78118-229-1

Building a Resilient Health System: Lessons from Northern Nigeria. IDS Working Paper 454

Published 1 January 2015
Contents