Factors related to the provision of quality health care services at selected public clinics in the rural areas of the Capricorn District, Limpopo Province

Abstract

Quality health care includes availability, accessibility, affordability, acceptability, competence of health care providers, reducing waiting time, ensuring privacy and confidentiality, ensuring safety and security, and reducing mortality and morbidity. Despite many initiatives made by the National Department of Health through the Minister of Health, provision of quality health care services remains a serious challenge in South Africa, especially in the public rural clinics. Communities from rural areas face many challenges at the public healthcare clinics such as poor infrastructure, attitudes from staff, old equipment, insufficient medicines, dirty healthcare sectors, and longer waiting times, which has led to provision of poor health care services. Methodology A quantitative research approach was used to conduct this study. The study was conducted in the Capricorn District of the Limpopo Province. Three municipalities; namely Blouberg, Lepelle-Nkumpi and Aganang, were selected from the five municipalities located in the Capricorn District because they are predominantly rural. A simple random sampling applying fish bowl method was used to select the public clinics in each municipality. A cross-sectional study design was used to conduct the study. Only professional nurses were selected to participate in this study. Data were collected using a structured self-administered questionnaire, over a period of three months. A total of 155 professional nurses were selected because they met the selection criteria. The response rate was 100% because all the 155 questionnaires distributed were completed. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences program version 22.0 with the assistance of the University of Limpopo statistician. Results The findings of the study indicated that only 3 (2%) of the clinics operated for 24 hours, 72 (46%) operated for 8 hours and 80 (52%) operated for 12 hours. The majority of the professional nurses 123 (83%) said that the clinics are overwhelmed by large numbers of patients, whereas 26 (17%) of the professional nurses said that the clinics are not overwhelmed by large numbers of patients. Very few 29 (19%) professional nurses were satisfied with the salary they were paid, whereas the majority 124 (80%) were not satisfied with salary they were paid, and only 2 (1%) were unsure. Recommendations Recommendations were made to improve the quality of healthcare services in the public rural clinics: The Department of Health should review the salaries they pay professional nurses in rural clinics, particularly the Occupational Specific Dispensation, and they should be given a higher salary. Furthermore, the government should increase the salaries of nurses working in the public rural clinics to at least 10% higher than those in urban clinics within the next 5 years to attract more nurses to the public rural clinics. The Limpopo Provincial Department of Health should liaise with the treasury department to provide realistic budget to accommodate the population. Conclusion The findings of this study revealed the factors related to the provision of quality health care services at the selected public clinics in the rural areas of the Capricorn District, Limpopo Province. The study was limited to public clinics in the rural areas; therefore, the findings of this study cannot be generalised to the clinics that did not participate in the study. Keywords: Quality, healthcare services, public rural clinics.