Perception of Health Professionals on the National Health Act, 2014, in University College Hospital, Ibadan

Abstract

Background The National Health Bill was the most debated bill from the legislative arm of government since 1999 and yet, many health professionals are largely unaware of its details. There had been insufficient health legislation establishing a unified national health system in Nigeria, such as provided for in the National Health Act (NHA), 2014, leading to duplication of functions and laws. Health professionals, being key policy actors and at the front line of healthcare, easily notice the impact of policies set by actors in the health-care system. Therefore, their knowledge and perception of the NHA as legitimate, will compel obedience with the provisions of the act, and also create a basis for stronger advocacy for its implementation for the overall strengthening of the health-care system that the act intends to provide a legal framework for. Methodology This is a descriptive cross-sectional study to assess the perception of health professionals at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, on the NHA, 2014. Participants were selected by a multistage (stratified and then systematic) random sampling technique. Data were collected quantitatively using a self-administered semi-structured questionnaire. The quantitative data were entered and analysed using IBM SPSS version 23. Results Awareness of the respondents about the Act was good, with up to 75% of respondents being aware of the existence of the NHA Act. However, the knowledge of the content of the Act was poor among all the cadres of health professionals. The differences in awareness among the different cadres of health professionals were statistically significant with the doctors being more aware and the nurses least aware, P = 0.001. The majority of health professionals perceive that the NHA is sufficient to regulate health care and set the appropriate standards in Nigeria. However, the health-care professionals also perceive that Nigerian government is incapable of diligently implementing the provisions of the Act. Conclusion There is a need for sustained remedial action by health-care professional bodies, organised media, and relevant government ministries and agencies, to ensure that stakeholders, including health professionals, are abreast with the provisions of the NHA, through prioritising health laws as key areas in undergraduate school curricula and continuing medical education on health laws for the practicing health professionals. Good knowledge of the Act will increase the advocacy efforts by the health professionals and other stakeholders towards the implementation of the provisions of the Act by the government and other relevant stakeholders. There is also a need for the government to show more commitment in publicising its effort at the implementation of the Act to improve the poor perception by the health professionals on the government’s ability to implement the provisions of the Act, as seen in this study.

Keywords

• awareness
• health professionals
• knowledge
• national health act 2014
• perception