Accra: The Community-led Responsive and Effective Urban Health Systems (CHORUS) has urged policymakers to devise different approaches in the delivery of urban health. This initiative aims to ensure health systems work across sectors, not in isolation.
According to Ghana News Agency, Professor Helen Elsey, the Research Director of CHORUS and Professor of Global Public Health at the University of York, UK, emphasized the importance of involving private and informal health providers in making significant changes to health systems, particularly in West Africa. Her remarks were made during an interview at the Evidence to Impact Policy event held in Accra, themed 'Urban Health Systems: Research Evidence to Inform Urban Health Policy and Systems in West Africa'.
Prof Elsey highlighted the urgent need for health systems that align with the realities of urban living, especially as Africa and Asia are expected to experience significant urban population growth. She stated that the future of health lies in cities and stressed the importance of immediate action. Prof Elsey advised that communities should be central to health system reforms and recommended integrating CHORUS evidence into ongoing strategies for improving primary healthcare delivery and urban health equity.
The event also acknowledged the efforts of the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service in implementing the Network of Practice (NoP), which aims to strengthen primary healthcare by connecting sub-district health centres with community-based facilities. This initiative is part of the goal to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2030 through improved referral systems, enhanced quality of care, and reduced overcrowding at district hospitals.
Researchers from Ghana, Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Nepal shared their findings to strengthen urban health systems. The CHORUS Research Consortium, funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), has been active in these countries over the past six years, addressing barriers to equitable and resilient urban health systems in low- and middle-income settings. In Ghana, efforts have focused on urban Primary Health Care strengthening in Ashaiman and Madina Municipalities in the Greater Accra Region.
Dr Dominic Dormenyo Gadeka, a Health Policy and Systems Specialist at the University of Ghana School of Public Health and CHORUS Researcher, underscored the importance of multi-sector collaboration in improving urban health outcomes. He emphasized the need for practical, cross-sector solutions and warned that the health of the urban poor is often worse than that of rural populations. Dr Gadeka called for policies targeting the urban poor and stressed the urgent need for strengthened urban primary healthcare, increased community health workers, and people-centred policies.