Facilities

Facilities are the physical or operational points where healthcare happens. They range from large, specialized hospitals to small, community-based posts and temporary outreach sites.

Together, Facilities form a connected network, ensuring care is delivered at the right level and that patients, resources, and information can flow smoothly through the health system.

Facilities can:

• ⚕️deliver health services,

• 💉store medical resources, or

• 🚑coordinate health-related activities.

They are the points of action in a health system — where:

• 🩺care is provided,

• 💊supplies are distributed,

• 🗒️data is collected, and

• 🎬programs are implemented.

Why Facilities Matter?

Facilities play a vital role in the services they provide, such as:

• ✅ Service Delivery – They represent the actual points where patients receive

  • 🩺care,

  • 💉vaccinations,

  • 🩻diagnostics, and/or

  • 💊medicines.

• 📊 Data Collection – Facilities are often the primary source of health system data (e.g., patient visits, disease reports, inventory).

• 🪜 Structured Networks – Facilities often exist within an organized network or referral system, where larger centers support or oversee smaller sites.

• 🔄 Operational Planning – Identifying and classifying facilities is essential for logistics, workforce planning, and resource allocation.

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Difference between Places and Facilities

While 🗾“Places” give us the geographic context (e.g., a city or district), 🏥Facilities give us the service delivery context

• 🩺showing where healthcare actually happens within those places.

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🏥 Facility Networks and Relationships

Facilities are rarely isolated — they exist within a referral network or operational structure, where each type has a defined role and relationship with others.

💼For example:

• 🏤A health post may refer complex cases to a primary clinic.

• 🩻That clinic may refer surgical or specialist cases to a district hospital.

• 🏥Finally, the district hospital may refer highly complex or rare cases to a national hospital.

🔗This structured network ensures that care is provided at the most appropriate level while maintaining clear pathways for patient movement and resource coordination

🪜Facility Hierarchy

Facilities exist in a hierarchy much like Places edited through the Place hierarchy. This facility hierarchy is used for several functions including:

Automatically routing requests for supply from the parent to children

Reporting roll-up by medical area/division/national hospitals

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Examples

Here's how "facilities" might look in the real world

Facility Type	Description	Purpose	Examples
National / Referral Hospital	Large, specialized center	Advanced care, research, referrals	Toronto General (CA), Kenyatta National (KE)
Regional / Provincial Hospital	Major regional facility	Intermediate care, referral hub	Western Regional (NP), Ontario Shores (CA)
District / County Hospital	Local hospital	Comprehensive care, local referrals	Nakaseke District (UG), Peel Memorial (CA)
Primary Health Center / Clinic	Community-level facility	Basic healthcare, prevention	Community Health Centre (CA), PHC Kerala (IN)
Health Post / Dispensary	Small local site	Basic services, referrals upward	Village Health Post (ET), Local Dispensary (KE)
Outreach / Mobile Site	Temporary/mobile service point	Access for remote or underserved populations	Mobile Vaccination Unit (CA), Outreach Site (TZ)

🏢National or Referral Hospitals (Top-tier service centers)

Brief Explanation

• 🏥Large hospitals with advanced diagnostic, surgical, and specialty care services.

  • 🗒️They often act as referral destinations for complex cases from other facilities.

• 🔗Provide specialized care, advanced procedures, medical education, and serve as national centers of excellence.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🍁Toronto General Hospital – Canada

  • 🚩Kenyatta National Hospital – Kenya

  • 🏳️All India Institute of Medical Sciences – India

🏥Regional or Provincial Hospitals (Intermediate service centers)

Brief Explanation

• 🏥Major hospitals serving a specific region or province, typically offering more services than local facilities but fewer than national hospitals.

• 🔗Provide inpatient and outpatient care, emergency services, and act as referral points for district or community facilities.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🚩Western Regional Hospital – Nepal

  • 🍁Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences – Canada

  • 🏴Regional Referral Hospital – Uganda

🏨District / County Hospitals (Local comprehensive care centers)

Brief Explanation

• 🏥Mid-level hospitals that serve smaller geographic areas (such as a district or county).

  • 🩺They offer general inpatient care, surgery, maternal services, and diagnostics.

• 🔗Provide essential care locally and refer more complex cases to larger hospitals.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🏴Nakaseke District Hospital – Uganda

  • 🍁Peel Memorial Centre – Canada

  • 🏳️Chittagong District Hospital – Bangladesh

🏫Primary Health Centers / Community Health Clinics (Frontline service providers)

Brief Explanation

• 🏥Facilities offering basic healthcare services

  • ⚕️such as routine check-ups, vaccinations, maternal care, and chronic disease management — often at the community level.

• 🔗Provide accessible, preventive, and essential healthcare services close to where people live.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🍁Community Health Centre – Ontario, Canada

  • 🏳️Primary Health Centre – Kerala, India

  • 🚩Rural Health Unit – Philippines

🏤Health Posts / Dispensaries (Entry-level or satellite points)

Brief Explanation

• 🏥Small facilities with limited staff and services

  • 🖼️often operating in rural or remote areas.

• 🔗Extend basic healthcare access to underserved communities and refer patients to larger facilities when needed.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🚩Village Health Post – Ethiopia

  • 🏳️Local Dispensary – Kenya

  • 🏴Rural Health Post – Nepal

🚑Outreach or Mobile Service Sites (Non-permanent or activity-based sites)

Brief Explanation

• 🛖Temporary or mobile setups where health services are delivered directly in communities

  • 💉often for immunizations, health campaigns, or screening programs.

• 🔗Reach populations that cannot easily access permanent facilities.

• 💼Examples:

  • 🚑Mobile Vaccination Unit – Canada

  • 🛖Outreach Clinic Site – Tanzania

  • ⛺Pop-up Health Camp – India

Working with Facilities

In regards to Facilities, here is a list of available operations that can be done:

• 👀Searching for and Viewing an Facility

• ➕Adding a new Facility Registration

• ✏️Editing an Facility Registration

• ❌Removing an Facility Registration