What we monitor
Six types of health facilities
Organised by province, health zone and health area, like the Congolese health system.
- DispensaryBasic local care
- Health postFirst point of contact in the health area
- Health centreIncluding referral health centres
- HospitalGeneral referral, provincial and university hospitals
- PharmacyPharmacy or drug depot
- ClinicPrivate clinic or polyclinic
Who monitors?
Health committees trained by CERC
Trained by CERC
Health committees (CODESA)
CERC identifies and trains CODESA members. In each health area, their health committee visits the facilities with HealthCheck, reports problems and follows up on their correction.
Enhanced anonymity
Health workers
Nurses, midwives, doctors, pharmacists: they report system failures — stock-outs, unpaid salaries, broken equipment, pressure.
Patients and community
Patients, carers, companions, civil society and NGOs can also report what they saw or lived, with an account validated by CERC.
What we check
Eleven areas, precise questions
At each visit: 20 questions shared by all facilities, then the questions specific to its type. Examples:
Access to care
« Is a patient in a life-threatening emergency treated before any discussion of payment? »
Costs and receipts
« Is the official price list displayed and readable for patients? »
Medicines
« Are basic essential medicines available today? »
Staff
« Are the expected staff present and identifiable (badge, coat, name)? »
Hygiene
« Is clean water available for care and hand washing? »
Equipment
« Does the facility have electricity when it needs it? »
Patient safety
« Has a patient been held for non-payment (detention for debt)? »
Maternity
« Is a qualified midwife available 24 hours a day? »
Integrity
« Are free medicines sold, or money requested to speed up care? »
Governance
« Is a complaints register or box available and visible? »
Working conditions
« Were staff paid for the last month due? »
Internal report by health workers
How it works
From finding to verified fix
- 1
Training
CERC identifies CODESA members in each health area and trains them in citizen monitoring and HealthCheck.
- 2
Visit
The health committee of the area, trained by CERC, visits the facility and answers the questionnaire for its type on HealthCheck.
- 3
Report
Every “red” answer becomes a problem; CERC reviews sensitive cases before anything is published.
- 4
Dialogue
The facility’s management is informed and agrees with the committee on what must change.
- 5
Verification
A “green” answer at the next visit confirms the fix, observed on site.
Life of a problemReportedAcknowledgedFixedResolved
Dashboard
The health indicators we track
Published from the first visits, by province, health zone and facility type.
- of facilities display their price list
- report a stock-out of essential medicines
- report patients held for debt
- median time to fix, by facility type
Patient feedback
An anonymous exit survey after consultation, published only from 5 answers:
- Waiting time
- Costs & receipts
- Medicines available
- Respect
- Satisfaction
Confidentiality
Stronger rules for health
Monitoring is about facilities, never about patients.
No individual health data
No diagnosis, no patient name, no medical record. Surveys are anonymous and aggregated.
No identifiable person in photos
No patient and no named document: CERC blurs or rejects before publication.
Health workers protected
Their reports stay internal to CERC and are only published in aggregate, by health zone.
Serious cases first
A patient held for debt alerts CERC immediately and is only published once verified.
Take part
Join citizen monitoring of health care
Open an account
Patient, carer, companion, community member, CODESA member, civil society or NGO: open your account. CERC validates it and sends your login details by SMS or e-mail.
Open an accountAre you a health worker?
Report the failures you see in full confidence. Only CERC knows your identity.
Contact CERC