Assessment Of Factors Influencing Service Delivery At Subcounty Hospitals In Meru County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

Integrated and people-centred health services are critical for realizing universal health care coverage. This can only be achieved through provision of efficient and effective health services. Service delivery is one of the key building blocks of any health system; it is an immediate output of the inputs into the health system, such as the health workforce, procurement and supplies, infrastructure and financing. The rising burden of disease and weak health systems are being compounded by the poor health service delivery. The purpose of the study was to determine factors influencing service delivery at sub-county hospitals in Meru County, Kenya. The objectives of the study was to determine the influence of staff on service delivery in sub-county hospitals in Meru County; to assess the influence of facilities on service delivery in sub-county hospitals in Meru County; to establish the influence of management practices on service delivery in sub-county hospitals in Meru County and to evaluate the influence of Drugs procurement process on service delivery in sub-county hospitals in Meru County. The study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional design. The target population consisted of five officers from each of the twenty three sub-county hospitals which totalled up to one hundred and fifteen. Open and closed ended question were used to collect data. Data was analyzed using Epidata and SPSS version 22.0. Correlation and multi linear regression analysis were respectively used to establish the strength and direction of the relationship between the variables and the extent of independent variable on service delivery while descriptive statistics were used to generate means and standard deviation from the collected data. There was a positive significant relationship between staff, facilities, management practices and drugs procurement (Staff r= 0.892, p=.000; Facilities r= 0.969, p=.000; Management practices r= 0.891, p=.000; and Drugs procurement r=0.930, p=.000.respectively) and service delivery in Meru sub-county hospitals. It is concluded that staff, facilities, management practices and drugs procurement had positive and significant effect on service delivery among Meru sub-county hospitals. This study recommends that management of Meru sub-county hospitals should motivate and have the required number of staff, have adequate and useable facilities, engage in management practices that will add value to hospital operations as well as procure drugs in a timely manner, of the right quality and quantity.