The Effectiveness of Participatory Communication on the Implementation of Makueni Universal Health Care (MUHC)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the effectiveness of participatory communication (PC) on the implementation of Makueni Universal Health Care (MUHC) program. Its objectives were to find out the PC avenues used in the implementation of the MUHC program, determine the level of PC used, and to establish how PC influenced the uptake MUHC. The study adopted a descriptive research design and its target population comprised the Makueni County development committee members. Purposive sampling technique was used to select a sample size of 100 respondents. Questionnaire, in-depth interview, and focus group discussions were used in data collection and the collected data was analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) and thematic analysis approach respectively. The study found that all stakeholders had an equal opportunity in MUHC implementation since most of the categories of people were involved. Also, the study established that the Makueni County government dialogued with stakeholders during the MUHC implementation processes, although power to make final decisions was held by the government but the citizens aired their views. The study further found that PC had influenced the uptake of MUHC program, where 22(95.7%) of the development committee members asserted that it motivated the residents to register in the program. The study concluded that PC was not effective in the implementation of MUHC. The study recommends that PC structures should be strengthened and increased to empowerment level so as to make MUHC more effective to the people of Makueni.