Where should someone seek routine health care in Senegal?

Public primary care is usually the first place to seek routine health care in Senegal. Depending on the service needed and the local facility, a person may start at a case de santé, poste de santé or centre de santé and receive a referral to an EPS or hospital.

Which emergency number provides medical help for a life-threatening health emergency in Senegal?

Call 1515 for the SAMU National medical emergency service in Senegal. The call enters a medical regulation process in which a doctor assesses the situation and may arrange an ambulance or emergency medical unit.

How can someone check payment and health coverage for care in Senegal?

Health services in Senegal are not uniformly free. The person should check whether the service is covered by CMU, a mutuelle, an IPM scheme, private insurance or a specific public programme, and confirm the facility’s payment requirements before planned care when possible.

What rights does a patient have during health care in Senegal?

Patients in Senegal have rights to information, informed consent, refusal of care, dignity, non-discrimination, confidentiality, privacy and timely care. These rights also apply specifically to pregnant women within the relevant care setting.

How are medicines obtained and monitored after treatment in Senegal?

Medicines may come through the public supply chain from the PNA to regional or district depots and health facilities, or through private wholesalers and pharmacies. Availability varies locally, so the patient should follow the prescription and return for the agreed control visit when one is scheduled.

Health in Senegal

Health care in Senegal combines public, private, faith-based, military and community-based services. Routine care usually starts at a case de santé, poste de santé or centre de santé and moves to an EPS or hospital when diagnostic or specialist care requires referral. Access, available services, waiting time and payment depend on location, facility, staffing, medicines and health coverage. For a life-threatening emergency, call 1515 for the SAMU National medical emergency service.

Tip

Choose a nearby facility that can actually provide the required care, and confirm coverage and medicine availability before planned treatment. Use 1515 immediately for a life-threatening medical emergency. For ongoing or non-urgent care, keep prescriptions, referral information and control appointments together so treatment does not break between facilities.

byAminata&Mamadou

Senegal’s formal health system is organized as a care pyramid: a case de santé provides basic community-level services, a poste de santé offers primary care, a centre de santé provides broader diagnosis and treatment, and an EPS or hospital handles more advanced, specialist, surgical or inpatient care. A case de santé is a local community health facility. A poste de santé and a centre de santé are public primary-care structures with different levels of staff, equipment and diagnostic capacity. EPS means Établissement public de santé, a public health institution that can include hospital services. Private clinics and practices, faith-based facilities, military and paramilitary services also provide care. Referral and counter-referral connect these levels when a facility cannot provide the required examination, treatment or follow-up.