HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE AND IMPLEMENTATION OF HEALTH POLICY IN NIGERIA: A CASE OF NHIS IN FCT, ABUJA

Abstract

Health policies are an integrated approach towards achieving desired targets. Every nation desirous of healthy citizenry articulates critical approach towards addressing healthcare issues for her citizens over a determinable period of time. Like other policies, successful implementation of health policies are preconditioned by the provision of implementation factors as well as enabling environment. Healthcare infrastructure is one of the critical criteria for successful implementation of healthcare policies. In Nigeria, empirical findings have indicted poor health infrastructure as the bane of health of health policy failure. This study sought to join the debate by investigating the extent to which healthcare infrastructure has enabled/disabled the implementation of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) which is an offshoot of the National Health Policy in Nigeria. The study which is a survey research was anchored on Andersen’s Health Behaviour Theory and employed the instrument of questionnaire to elicit data from Health workers and NHIS enrollees in nine health institutions spread across four Area Councils in Abuja, namely, AMAC, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali. The data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). The study observed the existence of inadequate health infrastructure like hospital bed space inhibits effective utilization of health facilities by enrollees and also that electricity supply to the health facilities are epileptic thereby leading to poor service delivery by health workers to enrollees. It concludes that the problem of poor health infrastructure affects the effective implementation of NHIS and that the issues of health infrastructure are very critical to the effective implementation of NHIS in FCT and Nigeria in general. The paper recommends among others, state of emergency should be declared on health infrastructure; that statutory provisions should be made to consolidate the provision of health infrastructure; A stronger collaboration between the government and Civil Society Organization and indigenous research establishments; and finally special attention to be paid to the power sector in Nigeria.