Poster 12

Risk evaluation and management of the malaria commodities supply chain in Kajiado County, Kenya (74)

An analysis was conducted to examine risk evaluation and management involved in the malaria commodities supply chain (SC) in Kajiado West Sub-County, Kenya. In Kenya, it is estimated that 3.5 million cases and 10,700 deaths are related to malaria each year (WHO, 2021). Kajiado County experiences malaria outbreaks due to annual changes in climate conditions. Despite great efforts to prevent and control malaria, stockout of malaria supplies in Kajiado County is a significant challenge for the healthcare system. Kajiado County Health Products and Technologies Unit (HPTU), in collaboration with USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program-Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) Afya Ugavi, provided both technical and logistical support to evaluate supply chain (SC) management of rapid diagnostic kits (RDTs), insecticide- treated nets (ITNs), antimalarial drugs, and other critical health commodities that aid in the prevention and treatment of malaria. A field survey was employed to evaluate risks and implementation strategies of malaria commodities in Kajiado West sub-county SC on June 8, 2021. Out of 35 health facilities in Kajiado West sub-County, eight were selected to investigate the management strategies of malaria commodities. The selected health facilities were in regions that had experienced a malaria outbreak in the previous year. The findings indicated that two facilities had above-average (54%) commodity management, while the remaining six facilities had below-average commodity management scores. Additionally, half of the facilities lacked human resource capacity while most had a low level of financial management programs. All the facilities adhered to best practices of malaria case management, however, most of the facilities had inadequate malaria commodities inventory and storage. Data management capacities were average among the facilities while the availability of appropriate documentation was generally low. Even though healthcare workers had appropriate training on the management of malaria, the lack of adequate malaria commodities appeared to be a major factor contributing to the inability to control and prevent malaria in the region. Therefore, routine, and standardized risk evaluation and management should be undertaken to ensure SC commodity security.

David Thuo¹, Dr Diane Sibi¹, Miriam Okara²

¹Équate Kajiado County, Kenya, 2Project Global Health Supply Chain – Afya Ugavi Activity