Importance of integration of Safety and Health into Primary Health Care; a casing point of Uganda

Introduction
The health sector in Uganda like in most developing countries is faced with a wide range of safety and health issues that emanate from either lack of funding or disproportionate/under funding for the safety and health programmes. The study aims at highlighting some of the interventions Ministry of health has undertaken together with Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development to build capacity to address safety and health.

Methods
The Ministry of health, with support from the capacity programme and funding from USAID initiated a safety and health capacity building programme aimed at establishing a system for monitoring safety and health system within the health sector. The programme was piloted in 8 districts out of 88 districts. After one year the programme was evaluated by department of Occupational safety and health

Results
Uganda has population of 32 million, 13.4 million labour force of which 59,680 health workers with the health worker to persons ration being at 1:516. 210 health workers (from health center III & IV) and 120 district leader were trained. 70 health facilities had OSH committees. 65% of participants using tools developed for hazard identification, inspection and monitoring and found them to be user friendly. safety and health systems existed in health centers of the intervention districts though not integrated in the existing primary health care system which rendered it inadequate, poorly equipment, poorly operated and maintained.

Discussion
The safety and health system within the health sector is poorly enforcement, managed and constrained with under funding, high patient to health worker ratio and understaffing. For effective and efficient implementation of the National OSH policy among health workers there is the need to integrate the occupational safety and health systems into the existing primary health care systems to reduce on the resources and duplication of the effort.