Pooled procurement, while it has its benefits, can bring about challenges when done haphazardly. In the Liberian Health Sector for instance, multiple sources of procurement in the private health system of Liberia has lead to many challenges, i.e. quality of drugs, price variation, product information sharing and the purchasing power of facility managers.
These challenges can have diverse effects on the individual consumers, healthcare providers, the healthcare Sector and the country as a whole.
Therefore, the Healthcare Federation of Liberia facilitated the development of a Pooled Procurement assessment System for Family Planning, Reproductive, Maternal, New-Born, and Child Health commodities.
The general objectives of the survey was to assess the quality of procurement and supply chain management system at the level of the selected private health facilities in Montserrado County, to facilitate increased access to lifesaving, quality assured, safe, efficacious medicines and related supplies, and to identify the strengths and weaknesses in the existing procurement system for Family Planning, Malaria, Maternal and Child Health commodities.
The methods used for the survey was a cross sectional mixed method which included quantitative and qualitative assessment. The method was conducted through site visitations to private health facilities. Thirty-five (35) entities (15 clinics, 7 hosp., 11 phar., 2 NGOs) were targeted for the field assessment. Data were obtained through record reviews and interviews of OICs, Medical Directors, Pharmacists, and wholesale managers.
A one-day pre-survey training workshop was held for data collectors on the application of the e-tool (KOBO Collect) and the key objectives of the survey.
