The National Agency for the Evaluation and Accreditation of Health Facilities (Anaes) organized a workshop last Monday in Koulikoro to inform and sensitize key stakeholders about the accreditation process for Community Health Centers (Cscom).

The opening of the workshop was presided over by the prefect of the Koulikoro Circle, Mrs. Coulibaly Mariam Coulibaly, in the presence of the director-general of Anaes, Sekouli Fadjadji Touré, representatives of technical and financial partners, and other guests.

The meeting aimed to inform and guide key stakeholders on the accreditation process for Cscom. “We are pleased with the choice of the Koulikoro Region for this quality approach, which undoubtedly allows, on the one hand, the improvement of the performance indicators of health centers and, on the other hand, access to quality care for the population,” introduced the prefect of Koulikoro. She also clearly stated that this workshop is part of a dynamic of overall evaluation of the quality of care and processes. Mrs. Coulibaly Mariam Coulibaly also specified that the meeting represents a framework for discussions to guide stakeholders in their mission to guarantee quality care to the population.

For his part, the director-general of Anaes outlined the context of the workshop. “The government has pursued a health policy with the main strategic foundation of monitoring, evaluating, and strengthening the health system to enable various health programs to achieve their objectives.”

According to Sekouli Fadjadji Touré, the accreditation of health facilities is a political will displayed by the authorities. Thus, accreditation has been recommended in the Decennial Plan for Health and Social Development (PDSS) 2014-2023 and in the various Decennial Plans for Health and Social Development (Prodess), which represent five-year phases of this plan.

The presentation by Dr. Keïta Fatoumata Bagayoko on Anaes, the context, and the development of the accreditation tool for Cscom, as well as the role and responsibility of actors during accreditation visits, sparked reactions and fruitful exchanges on the entire evaluation and accreditation process.

Many questions from participants focused on the difference between accreditation by Results-Based Financing (RBF) and that of Anaes, the steps to follow to request advisory support and the associated costs.

Questions like why other Cscom not covered by RBF were not involved, who is involved in the accreditation of Cscom, who covers the expenses related to the accreditation team’s (Anaes) travel, and what type of expenses the Community Health Association (Asaco) must bear in the accreditation process were also addressed.

Calm responses were provided by the director-general of Anaes and his team. This information and awareness workshop, according to the initiators, was a real success. The objective was achieved. Considering the interest shown by everyone on the issue, the Koulikoro Region has committed to the quality of care at the Cscom level, Dr. Keïta Fatoumata Bagayoko stated succinctly.

It is useful to note that the Koulikoro Circle has 23 Cscom. Two of them have been accredited, and 15 others are on the list for upcoming accreditations.

Amadou MAÏGA

Amap-Koulikoro

For the “L’Essor” newspaper