Project Summary
Yobe State in Northern Nigeria has a very small number of health service vehicles in relation to its geographic size and population. A supply side assessment in 2007 noted the presence of only 24 health service vehicles (excluding motorcycles) for a population estimated at 2.4 million indicating just one vehicle per 100,000 people.
The few vehicles that do exist need to be utilized as efficiently and safely as possible to ensure health service delivery is maximized. To this end, Transaid has been working to train Transport Officers in the use of Transport Management Systems and has been involved in the training of several ambulance driver trainers.
The government of Yobe State procured 35 ambulances to boost its emergency transport and healthcare capacity. To help assist the integration of new vehicles, Transaid was requested to train six ambulance driver trainers in support of a much wider internal training programme. With the new skills and techniques learned, the six driver trainers delivered a training course for a further 20 ambulance drivers.
This project was carried out with the assistance of Malcolm Kidd, Driver Trainer for Van Hee, a Transaid supporting company.
The PRRINN programme has been operational in four Northern States of Nigeria (Jigawa, Katsina, Yobe and Zamfara) since early 2007 and has been integrated into the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) programme since September 2008.
The Problem
People, governments and health workers in Northern Nigeria remain extremely concerned about the high levels of death and disease experienced by mothers and children, especially in some of the poorer states where the rates of maternal, newborn and child mortality are some of the highest in the world.
The latest World Health Organisation Statistics Report 2009 states that the Maternal Mortality Rate in Nigeria is 1,100 deaths per 100,000 live births, in comparison to the UK which is recorded as 8 deaths per 100,000 live births.
One of the key reasons for this is lack of access to affordable and available healthcare and the lack of skilled health attendants at births. Transaid is working with the Ministry of Health in Nigeria to tackle problems of transport and access within the health service to improve the availability of healthcare for women and young children.
The Process
Transaid delivered a twelve day ‘Training of Trainers’ course in basic driving skills and advanced driving techniques to six driver trainers. This focused on both theoretical and practical demonstrations. Following this, an eight day course on basic driving skills and advanced driving techniques was delivered by the trainers to 20 ambulance drivers.
The driver training curriculum included the following topics:
• Planned Preventative Maintenance
• Basic First Aid
• Safe Driving Theory
• Basic Driving Techniques
• Nigerian Highway Code
• Hazard Awareness
Elements of the training were also delivered by the Nigeria Red Cross Society and the Federal Road Safety Commission in Yobe State, who acted as facilitators.
Partners
The PRRINN/MNCH Consortium led by Health Partners International, Save the Children and Grid Consulting. Local partners: Ministry of Health - Yobe State, Millennium Development Goals Office - Yobe State, Federal Road Safety Commission - Yobe State and Nigerian Red Cross.
The Result
As a result of Transaid’s input, six drivers have now been trained in the skills needed to deliver effective driver training and 20 ambulance drivers have been trained in basic driving skills and advanced driving techniques.
A driver training curriculum has been developed for use in future driver training courses within Yobe State. This will be further localised by the Federal Road Safety Commission in Yobe prior to final translation into Hausa, the main local language. A Hausa translation of a daily vehicle check sheet was also produced and disseminated to all drivers.
The Impact
This training will greatly help to improve the efficiency of the health service delivered and will increase the availability and number of fully operational ambulances.
As a result of the driver training implemented, the following operational improvements will be achieved:
• Reduced expenditure on fuel and maintenance for the ambulances
• Increased lifespan for the vehicles
• Reduced number of health and safety incidents and potential road accidents when operating the vehicles
A more efficient and cost effective health service delivery means more people will be able to access emergency transfers. With a more highly utilized fleet and newer vehicles, health experts and supplies will reach more health facilities and outreach sites, increasing the availability of healthcare in rural areas. The Ministry of Health will also be able to respond faster to emergencies, greatly reducing the time taken to refer women in emergency pregnancy cases from community to health centre.
By reducing the operating costs of the ambulance fleet the Ministry of Health in Yobe can also focus resources elsewhere for example; on training more midwives or undertaking activities within the community to educate citizens on issues surrounding maternal health.
See also:
• Nigeria, Emergency Transport System for Pregnant Women, PRRINN-MNCH Update, Oct. 2009
• Nigeria, Training of Transport and Health Officers, Zamfara State, PRRINN Update - May, 2009
• Nigeria, Jigawa State, Safe Motherhood Emergency Transport Scheme, 2005-2006
• Nigeria, Increasing access to healthcare for mothers and children, PRRINN - MNCH Update – April 2009
• Nigeria, Programme for Reviving Routine Immunization in Four Northern States, 2007 – 2011
