Mennonite Mennonite Health Care in Health Care in

DR CongoDR Congoby Franklin Baerby Franklin Baer

Senior Advisor to I.M.A. for SANRU Senior Advisor to I.M.A. for SANRU IIIIII

Baertracks, Harrisonburg VABaertracks, Harrisonburg VA

How can we How can we help to improve help to improve

the health of the health of people in DR people in DR

Congo? Congo?

1) Exclusive Breastfeeding

2) Vaccinate completely

3) Vitamin A twice a year

4) Sleeping under bednets (ITN)

5) Prompt treatment for fevers

6) Oral Rehydration Therapy for diarrhea

7) Washing hands regularly

8) Prenatal preventive treatment of malaria

9) Child Spacing

10) Abstinence and loyalty to avoid AIDS

Ten Commandments of Health

The Ten Commandments of Health

Ten Commandments of Health

Mennonite Health Work in DR Congo

The blue lines show The blue lines show all the “paved” all the “paved”

roads of Congo!roads of Congo!

The 306 The 306

Health Zones Health Zones

of DR Congoof DR Congo

1)1) Well-defined geographic areas Well-defined geographic areas

2)2) Strongly decentralized Strongly decentralized

3)3) Often Often co-managed by FBOsco-managed by FBOs

Health Zones are . . .

1) Health Zones are 1) Health Zones are well-defined well-defined

geographic areas geographic areas

Population of 150,000Population of 150,000

Communities (200)Communities (200)

Health centers (20)Health centers (20)

A referral hospital (1)A referral hospital (1)

Health Zones Health Zones and Health Care and Health Care

in DR Congoin DR Congo

The Health Zone of Nyanga (West Kasai Province)

NYANGA

A Typical Health Zone Reference Hospital

HZ OfficeHealth Centers

Defined from the bottom upDefined from the bottom up

Survive by local initiatives and Survive by local initiatives and auto-financingauto-financing

Well positioned as “middle-out” Well positioned as “middle-out” development agentsdevelopment agents

2) HZs are s2) HZs are strongly decentralizedtrongly decentralized

400 Hospitals in Congo (c. 1973)

1975-1981

1982-1983: SANRU I begins

1984-1985

3) Health Zones are often 3) Health Zones are often co-managed by FBOsco-managed by FBOs

Very good collaboration between the MOH and FBOs

FBOs are not confused with the for-FBOs are not confused with the for-profit private sectorprofit private sector

50% of HZs co-managed by FBOs

FBO/NGO Co-managed Health ZonesFBO/NGO Co-managed Health Zones

306 306 Health Health ZonesZones

515 515 Health Health ZonesZones

Populations Served by Mennonite Co-Managed Health Zones

Health Zone Population

Kajiji 150,000

Mukedi 160,000

Kalonda-Ouest 220,000

Mutena 130,000

Ndjokopunda 120,000

Nyanga 100,000

Banga 85,000

    965,000

The I.M.A./ECC Congo Projects

ECC-I.M.A ECC-I.M.A

PMURR/SANTEPMURR/SANTESANRU IIISANRU III

Project GoalsSANRU & PMURR

Strengthen and sustain the capacity of health zones to provide and manage priority primary health care interventions.

Four NGO Development Strategies

From From Getting to the 21st CenturyGetting to the 21st Century by David Korten by David Korten

1) Exclusive Breastfeeding

2) Vaccinate completely

3) Vitamin A twice a year

4) Sleeping under bednets (ITN)

5) Prompt treatment for fevers

6) Oral Rehydration Therapy for diarrhea

7) Washing hands regularly

8) Prenatal preventive treatment of malaria

9) Child Spacing

10) Abstinence and loyalty to avoid AIDS

Priority PHC Interventions

SANRU & PMURR 75 Health Zones

A Typical Health Center in Kalonda Health Zone

Rehabilitation Efforts in Collaboration with SANRU

Well Baby ClinicsVaccinations, Vitamin A, Growth Monitoring, Health Education

Two Questions

1) What assistance can and should N. 1) What assistance can and should N. American Mennonites provide to American Mennonites provide to help with this work?help with this work?

2) What effective mechanisms could 2) What effective mechanisms could get that assistance where it can do get that assistance where it can do the most good?the most good?

Possible Strategies

1)1) Encourage the new Partnership Council to put Encourage the new Partnership Council to put health care on its development agendahealth care on its development agenda

2)2) Strengthen the role of CMCO & CFMC in the Strengthen the role of CMCO & CFMC in the co-management of health zonesco-management of health zones

3)3) Organize informational mtgs. of N. Amer. Organize informational mtgs. of N. Amer. partners to discuss how they can help. partners to discuss how they can help.

4) Compare sustainable systems development strategies with other denominations

5) Coordinate assistance with I.M.A./ECC’s SANRU and PMURR projects

Santé Santé Pour Tous Pour Tous et par Touset par Tous