Imagine needing to travel 500 miles to find a hospital because a loved one is in a life-threatening
situation. Imagine trying to navigate to this beacon of hope with adrenaline rushing through
your veins and clouding your judgment. Now imagine trying to do it without a map. 500 miles
out of your way, a place you’ve likely never been, and no way to be certain you’re even going
the right way. This horror story is a reality for many African people, with only 2 hospitals every
1000 mi2 in Nigeria, and accurate GPS coordinates for 50% of them (Ouma). Why does this
issue exist, and is there any solution to it?
situation. Imagine trying to navigate to this beacon of hope with adrenaline rushing through
your veins and clouding your judgment. Now imagine trying to do it without a map. 500 miles
out of your way, a place you’ve likely never been, and no way to be certain you’re even going
the right way. This horror story is a reality for many African people, with only 2 hospitals every
1000 mi2 in Nigeria, and accurate GPS coordinates for 50% of them (Ouma). Why does this
issue exist, and is there any solution to it?
The first, and arguably most obvious, reason for the lack of healthcare accessibility in Africa is
a lack of funding. Nearly all of the large African countries spend significantly less of their
%GDP on healthcare than countries like the US. Not only do they spend less than western
countries, but unlike the US the general trend in spending on healthcare is actually decreasing
as the years pass (“Current Health Expenditure”). According to Paul Ouma, an author and
co-author on several articles relating to the topic, “investment is needed in improving access.”
(Ouma) This has a clear effect on the effectiveness of medical care in Africa, as Sub-Saharan
Africa has a newborn death rate of 34 per 1,000 live births, a stark contrast to the US’s 5.82.
(Africa)
a lack of funding. Nearly all of the large African countries spend significantly less of their
%GDP on healthcare than countries like the US. Not only do they spend less than western
countries, but unlike the US the general trend in spending on healthcare is actually decreasing
as the years pass (“Current Health Expenditure”). According to Paul Ouma, an author and
co-author on several articles relating to the topic, “investment is needed in improving access.”
(Ouma) This has a clear effect on the effectiveness of medical care in Africa, as Sub-Saharan
Africa has a newborn death rate of 34 per 1,000 live births, a stark contrast to the US’s 5.82.
(Africa)
The other pressing issue with healthcare accessibility is that, as mentioned earlier, 50% of
hospitals in Africa aren’t accurately mapped to GPS (Ouma). This likely hasn’t been fixed up
until this point because in day to day life people generally don’t need a GPS to get around their
hometown, the same way that people don’t need a GPS to get to work or their favorite grocery
store once they learn where it is. The problem comes, as stated previously, when people need to
get somewhere far out of their normal scope and there simply isn’t an available GPS or map to
guide them. In fact, according to studies done by the Conversation, a news service dedicated to
spreading academic information to the general public, “Nearly half of the deaths and about a
third of disabilities in low and middle-income countries could be avoided if people had access
to emergency care” (Emelda). There have been a couple of solutions offered up for this issue
by various different companies. One organization in particular, the World Economic Forum,
focused entirely on this specific problem of accessibility of hospitals in Africa. Covering 48
African countries, they used their database to “overcome the problem… using online mapping
tools such as Google earth and OpenStreetMaps.”(Ouma) Another potential solution is not
focused as precisely on hospitals, nor Africa itself for that matter, and is instead attempting to
provide a solution for similar lacking GPS coordinates globally. This company goes by the
name “What3Words”, and has created an incredibly accurate map of all land masses on Earth
divided into 3x3 meter squares, each of which has a unique sequence of 3 words that represents
its precise location on the globe (“What3Words”). This is accessible from any smartphone, a
logical move in a developing country wherein 90% of the population, growing rapidly, has a
cellphone plan. (Radcliffe)
hospitals in Africa aren’t accurately mapped to GPS (Ouma). This likely hasn’t been fixed up
until this point because in day to day life people generally don’t need a GPS to get around their
hometown, the same way that people don’t need a GPS to get to work or their favorite grocery
store once they learn where it is. The problem comes, as stated previously, when people need to
get somewhere far out of their normal scope and there simply isn’t an available GPS or map to
guide them. In fact, according to studies done by the Conversation, a news service dedicated to
spreading academic information to the general public, “Nearly half of the deaths and about a
third of disabilities in low and middle-income countries could be avoided if people had access
to emergency care” (Emelda). There have been a couple of solutions offered up for this issue
by various different companies. One organization in particular, the World Economic Forum,
focused entirely on this specific problem of accessibility of hospitals in Africa. Covering 48
African countries, they used their database to “overcome the problem… using online mapping
tools such as Google earth and OpenStreetMaps.”(Ouma) Another potential solution is not
focused as precisely on hospitals, nor Africa itself for that matter, and is instead attempting to
provide a solution for similar lacking GPS coordinates globally. This company goes by the
name “What3Words”, and has created an incredibly accurate map of all land masses on Earth
divided into 3x3 meter squares, each of which has a unique sequence of 3 words that represents
its precise location on the globe (“What3Words”). This is accessible from any smartphone, a
logical move in a developing country wherein 90% of the population, growing rapidly, has a
cellphone plan. (Radcliffe)
As it stands, there are several potential solutions to the current issues in Africa; Still, the fact
remains that unless these changes are made to improve the quality and accessibility of
healthcare in Africa, the African people are going to remain forever teetering on the edge of
crisis.
remains that unless these changes are made to improve the quality and accessibility of
healthcare in Africa, the African people are going to remain forever teetering on the edge of
crisis.
Works Cited:
Africa Key Facts and Figures for Child Mortality, 7 Nov. 2016,
www.unicef.org/health/index_maternalhealth.html.
www.unicef.org/health/index_maternalhealth.html.
“Current Health Expenditure (% of GDP).” Data, 2015,
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS?locations=ZA-NG-UG-US-ZW-TZ-KE-
ZM&name_desc=false
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS?locations=ZA-NG-UG-US-ZW-TZ-KE-
ZM&name_desc=false
Mathews, T.J., and Anne K. Driscoll. “National Center for Health Statistics.” Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 21 Mar. 2017,
www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db279.htm.
Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 21 Mar. 2017,
www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db279.htm.
Emelda, Okiro, and Paul Ouma. “This Is How Far People in Africa Have to Travel for a Hospital.” U.S.
News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 18 Sept. 2018,
www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2018-09-18/people-in-africa-must-travel-far-to-find-
hospitals.
News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 18 Sept. 2018,
www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2018-09-18/people-in-africa-must-travel-far-to-find-
hospitals.
Ouma, Paul, et al. “This Is How Far People in Africa Have to Travel to Reach a Hospital.”
World Economic Forum, The Conversation, 26 Sept. 2018,
www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/people-across-africa-have-to-travel-far-to-get-to-a-hospital-we-
worked-out-how-far.
World Economic Forum, The Conversation, 26 Sept. 2018,
www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/people-across-africa-have-to-travel-far-to-get-to-a-hospital-we-
worked-out-how-far.
Radcliffe, Damian. “ Mobile in Sub-Saharan Africa: Can World's Fastest-Growing Mobile Region Keep
It up?” ZDNet, ZDNet, 24 Oct. 2018, www.zdnet.com/article/mobile-in-sub-saharan-africa-can-worlds-
fastest-growing-mobile-region-keep-it-up/.
It up?” ZDNet, ZDNet, 24 Oct. 2018, www.zdnet.com/article/mobile-in-sub-saharan-africa-can-worlds-
fastest-growing-mobile-region-keep-it-up/.
I really like your article! I appreciate the way you have written your article with an abundance of evidence to back up your claims and sentences, and by the end of it, I feel like this issue is really serious in Africa. My favorite part of the article are the solutions because it makes it feel like there is hope to end this problem, and they are things I have never heard of so I was surprised. Great job!
ReplyDeleteGreat job with this article, I really enjoyed reading it. Afterwards I felt much more informed on the issue in Africa, and I liked the solutions you listed at the ending. Another positive aspect is that your article was very strongly supported by evidence!
ReplyDeleteNice job on your article! I appreciate how your hook was very engaging and descriptive. I like how you include many solutions to this issue, as it provides hope for the future of Africa.
ReplyDeleteI really like your topic and how its very unique. I would have never thought about this and I think its a very interesting thing to discuss. I liked the conclusion about how there's changes trying to help this problem.
ReplyDelete