Table 1 Definitions for type of health facility
From: Successful implementation of ITN distribution through health facilities in Ghana
Health Facility Type | Definition |
|---|---|
CHPS | Community Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) is a national mechanism to deliver essential community-based health services involving planning and service delivery with the communities. It is the first point of call. Its primary focus is communities in deprived subdistricts and, in general, bringing health services close to the community. It is a clearly defined area within a subdistrict where a community health officer provides community-based health services, including home visits to clients residing in the CHPS zone. Some CHPS compounds also have a midwife attached to provide reproductive health services |
Clinic | Clinics do not provide a full range of services. They usually provide Reproductive and Child Health or basic curative services. It is designed to provide only curative care and screening for referrals to the health centre/ district hospital. Facilities of this type are mostly found at the community level, and most are private |
Health Centre | Health centres provide a full range of basic primary healthcare services (clinical, public health, and maternity services). It is usually staffed by a physician assistant, midwife/midwives, enrolled nurses, and community health officers. Facilities of this type are mostly found at the sub-district level |
Polyclinic | Polyclinics are usually sited in urban/ cosmopolitan areas to ease the congestion in teaching and regional hospitals and serve as large health centres to ensure that primary care services are evenly distributed and provide a range of services that are higher than a health centre. Polyclinics are planned with excess capacity for future expansion and development as district hospitals. These facilities provide 24-h services |
Hospital | A hospital comprises of a wide range of services and functional units. These include diagnostic and treatment functions, such as clinical laboratories, imaging, emergency rooms, and surgery; hospitality functions, such as food service and housekeeping; and the fundamental inpatient care or bed-related function District hospital: District hospitals serve geographically defined areas and are considered first referral facilities, providing a range of clinical services, including emergency services, inpatient care, laboratory testing, and surgeries. District hospitals provide a full range of primary healthcare services of a general hospital under the management of at least two general duty doctors Regional hospital: Regional hospitals that provide more specialized care and the next level of referral for more complicated cases, in addition to general inpatient care, outpatient services, laboratory care, and surgeries |
Maternity Home | Maternity homes are health facilities that focus on providing reproductive and family planning services |
Medical Centre | Medical centres are private/quasi-governmental facilities that operate like district/specialized hospitals |
Other | Refers to facilities that do not clearly fall within the categorizations above. Select examples include research institutions, Seventh Day Adventist facilities, and medical reception stations |