Factors Affecting the Availability of Essential Health Commodities in Tanzania with a Special Focus on the Tracer Commodities

Abstract

Background: Access to essential health commodities is fundamental to healthcare system efficacy. These commodities are vital in delivering health services and form integral elements within the World Health Organization's strengthening framework, encompassing the six foundational building blocks. Regrettably, there has been a global increase in shortages and stockouts of essential health commodities in recent years.

Objective: The study aimed to identify factors influencing the availability of essential health commodities throughout all levels of the supply chain in Tanzania.

Methods: A cross-sectional that employed qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. Quantitative data were analyzed using STATA version 16, while Qualitative data were thematically analyzed.

Results: Factors contributing to stockouts of essential commodities at the national level include increased demand, delayed shipments from donors, decreased funding commitments, delayed disbursement of funds, global shortages, inadequate governance, debt within the Medical Stores Department, donor dependency for vertical program commodities, and long lead times by Medical Stores Department suppliers. At the Regional and District levels, such factors include a shortage of human resources, lack of Electronic Medical Records, limited interoperability of information systems, poor quality of logistics data, inadequate use of data for decision-making, and poor inventory management. At the healthcare facility level, they include an overwhelming number of exempted clients, which reduces facility revenues.

Conclusion: More efforts are still needed to address both the upstream and downstream challenges needed to ensure sustainable access and availability of essential health commodities at service delivery points as a pathway for improving health sector performance.