Impact of community health care sites on access to health care for children aged 0 to 5 in the Cilundu and Mukumbi Health Zones, Eastern Kasai, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Abstract

Introduction The lack of access to quality healthcare affects nearly half of the world's population, leading to high mortality rates, particularly among children under five years old. This issue is especially prevalent in developing countries like the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which ranks fourth in child mortality rates. To address this challenge, the DRC has implemented a strategy of establishing Community Care Sites (CCS) in various health zones. Purpose This study aimed to assess the impact of Community Health Centers (CHCs) on healthcare access in the Cilundu Health Zone (HZ) in the DRC. Methodology A comparative, quasi-experimental study was conducted in two health zones: Cilundu (benefiting from CCS) and Mukumbi (non-beneficiary). The study involved 444 randomly selected participants, with 148 from the Cilundu HZ and 296 from the Mukumbi HZ. Results The study found that 75% of the population utilized the CCS for treating illnesses in children aged 0 to 5 years, primarily due to the lower costs and proximity of the facilities. Among the beneficiaries, 49.3% were able to pay for services easily, while 48.6% paid with difficulty. In contrast, in Mukumbi, 56.8% of the population paid with difficulty, and 39.2% struggled significantly. The number of cases treated increased after the introduction of the CCS. Conclusion The introduction of CCS has positively impacted access to healthcare in the Cilundu Health Zone, making healthcare more accessible and affordable for the local population.

Keywords

• Healthcare access
• community care sites
• child mortality
• quasi-experimental study
• health zones