Farma Health Services In Kono District

Main Office: Kono District

Eight years of civil war has displaced and affected 2.2 million people out of the 4.4 million total population of Sierra Leone, as well as disrupted an already deficient health system. The entire population is at risk of major diseases, particularly malaria, acute respiratory infections and malnutrition. Immunization coverage has seen a significant decline in the last decade, from 75 per cent in 1990 to 40 per cent in 1999, while measles and cholera outbreaks are prevalent. Several cases of tuberculosis have been confirmed and sporadic cases of neonatal tetanus have emerged. Sierra Leone has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, with 1,800 deaths per 100,000 births (according to 1996 estimates)
In January 2000, an outbreak of bloody diarrhea caused by shigella dysentery affected various areas and threatened to evolve into a regional outbreak. Another devastating consequence of war is the dramatic increase in amputations and mutilation of innocent civilians, including women and children. It is estimated that there are more than 1,000 people with lower or upper limbs amputated. The nutritional status of the population has been on the decline in the past two decades and the current humanitarian crisis has exacerbated an already deteriorated situation. The magnitude of the problem of micronutrient deficiency also shows a high proportion of anaemia among pregnant women and children under five. Death and migration of trained health staff, combined with insecurity and not affordable costs of medical services, added a further complication, drastically reducing accessibility to primary health care services.

WHO support to Sierra Leone has an emergency focus, but includes a significant relief and rehabilitation component aimed at recovery of war‑damaged health facilities and services and care for displaced populations. In this context, WHO has been involved in the development of a district health system. WHO is also working increasingly with non-governmental organizations.

WHO=s main activities in Sierra Leone include:
- health situation assessments (disease burden, logistics planning, manpower and facility planning);
- support to surveillance and control of specific disease problems (cholera, Lassa fever, meningitis, malaria, HIV/AIDS and other epidemic‑prone diseases);
- polio eradication (including acute flaccid paralysis surveillance), as part of the national eradication programme, in difficult or inaccessible areas;
- re‑establishment of district health management teams under the supervision of district medical officers;
- focused delivery of emergency drugs and supplies in areas of critical need