Somaliland in cammino: supporto alle eccellenze socio-sanitarie in pediatria e salute mentale - Somaliland Going Forward: support to social-health excellences in pediatrics and mental health

Data on the health status of the population has revealed that Somalia is one of the country with the worst situation in the world. The most affected group is that of children, whose access to hospitals and medical treatments is very heterogeneous. The situation is critical also for another group, that of mentally ill people, due to the persistent presence of civil wars and instability that has affected the country for a long time. The condition of these individuals is even worsen by the traditional local culture that supports the discrimination and social isolation of mentally ill people. Therefore, the issue of mental health in this territory is rarely addressed. Given the peculiar situation of Somaliland, the project aims at supporting the promotion of equality and accessibility in the national healthcare system and at improving the wellbeing of the population. In particular, the project is addressed to two sectors of the healthcare system, that is the paediatric department and the mental health sector.

1. Activities in the pediatric hospital (MASCTH) to improve the access to pediatric treatments, the computer system and the training of the medical staff, and to create a support network for local fundraising; 2. Activities in the mental health ward of the HGH hospital to improve the service and the training of the medical staff, and to pursue awareness campaigns on human rights of mentally ill people; 3. Support in the definition of the first Mental Health Policy, adopted by the Ministry of Health of the Federal Republic of Somalia; 4. Communication actvities and awareness campaigns in the national territory and in Italy; 5. Evaluation and monitoring of the above-mentioned activities.

The aim of the project is to improve the quality of life of people in Hargeisa through the reinforcement of public health services in the paediatric and mental health departments. The achievement of this objective will entail an improved capacity of local institutions to offer health services, both general (paediatric) and specialised (mental health), an increase in the total access to the hospital, including also refugees, and finally the introduction of a system of cost recovery. The effects of the project on the target population will be evaluated through a longitudinal analysis on the patients of the hospital, with respect to the customer satisfaction, their psychosocial wellbeing, and the burden of the principal caregiver. Furthermore, an analysis on the performance of the hospital will be done, based on a set of indicators measuring both demand and supply of the services and the financial aspects. The results will be reported in a final document which summarizes the activities of the project and their effects both on the target population and on the hospital perfomance.