Health in Zambia
Zambia is a landlocked country in Sub Saharan Africa which experiences a burden of both communicable and non-communicable diseases.
In terms of reproductive health, Zambia fulfills only 69.2% of what it is expected to achieve at its current level of income.
[6] The following objectives are set to achieve the aforementioned goal: As of December 2016, 275 out of 650 health posts were built and are operational.
[9] Zambia continues to experience a huge burden of disease, mainly characterized by high prevalence and impact of communicable diseases, particularly, malaria, HIV and AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), and Tuberculosis (TB), and high maternal, neonatal and child morbidity and mortality.
[12] Concerning sanitation, 29% of the urban population are connected to sewers and 30% are served by septic tanks or improved household-level latrines.
In addition, under the COVAX initiative, the country has received 302 400 doses of J&J/Janssen donated by the United States of America.
Levy Mwanawasa University Teaching Hospital is the main COVID-19 isolation center in the country.
In Zambia, the number of midwives per 1,000 live births is 5 and the lifetime risk of death for pregnant women is 1 in 38.
[20] Zambia may not attain its goals for reducing the Maternal Mortality ratio to 162/100,000 live births.
In Zambia the number of midwives per 1,000 live births is 5 and the lifetime risk of death for pregnant women is 1 in 38.
Key challenges are the following in this category of health: Some of the strategies by the ministry of health to combat these challenges include the strengthening of policy and regulatory frameworks for provision and access of adolescent health services, including clear policies and guidelines on age of consent to key SRH and HIV services and a roll out an adaptive leadership targeting key stakeholders.
However, with the epidemiological change in the burden of disease, the Ministry of Health has begun to pay more attention to NCDs such as hypertension, diabetes and cancers.
The country epidemiology is transitioning and will over the next decade be confronted by more NCDs compared to communicable disease .
In order to provide guidance to the fight against NCDs, the Government developed the NCD Strategic Plan 2011–2016, the National Cancer Control Strategic Plan 2022–2026, oral health standards of practice, and NCDs standard treatment guidelines.
Notable achievements include establishment and expansion of the Cancer Diseases Hospital; establishment of a national cervical cancer screening programme; finalisation of the mental health and tobacco products control bill; initiation of the HPV vaccination programme for prevention of cervical cancer and accompanying scale-up plan; the commissioning of the cardiac catheterisation laboratory; and implementation of the Rheumatic Heart Disease study.
[29] Despite these achievements, key challenges remain and include: To mitigate these challenges various measures have been put in place such as strengthening and promoting active screening for NCDs at all levels, including within health facilities, schools, and communities, so as to generate demand for such services and strengthening subsequent case management.
Furthermore, a deliberate attempt to enhance leadership and governance for the social determinants and risk factors of NCDs has been done through the establishment of a national NCD coordinating committee with membership by all ministries.
Malaria is the number one cause of hospitalization in Zambia and a major cause of morbidity and mortality, with pregnant women and young children at heightened risk.
[30] Although the four main malaria parasite species are present in Zambia, Plasmodium falciparum accounts for 98% of all infections.
[31] According to the Zambia Demographic and Health Survey, the percentage of children sleeping under insecticide-treated nets has increased from 6.5% in 2001/2 to 40.6% in 2014.
