Applying a Human-Centred Design Approach to Improve MNCH Commodities Availability

Timeline: Mai 2018 – Novembre 2018 | Status: Completed

Bauchi, Kebbi, and Sokoto States, Nigeria

Project Overview

The availability of essential maternal, newborn, and child health commodities is critical to ensuring that women and children receive timely and life-saving care. Yet stockouts, supply chain inefficiencies, and operational bottlenecks continue to affect access to vital health products across many healthcare systems.

In 2018, the Health Strategy and Delivery Foundation (HSDF), in partnership with USAID and McKinsey & Company, implemented the Applying a Human-Centred Design Approach to Improve MNCH Commodities Availability project in Bauchi, Kebbi, and Sokoto States.

Rather than focusing solely on technical supply chain solutions, the project adopted a human-centred design (HCD) approach that placed end users at the centre of problem-solving. By engaging healthcare workers, programme managers, and other stakeholders directly affected by commodity availability challenges, the initiative sought to understand the real-world barriers that influenced how commodities were procured, distributed, managed, and used.

The project generated insights that informed practical, user-focused solutions aimed at improving the availability of essential maternal, newborn, and child health commodities within the healthcare system.

Many supply chain interventions are designed from a systems perspective but may not fully reflect the realities experienced by frontline users. Healthcare workers often face challenges that extend beyond logistics, including administrative burdens, communication gaps, workflow constraints, and limited visibility into supply processes.

As a result, commodity availability challenges can persist even when technical systems are in place. Understanding the experiences, behaviours, and needs of those interacting with these systems is essential for developing solutions that are both effective and sustainable.

HSDF applied human-centred design methodologies to explore the factors affecting MNCH commodity availability and identify opportunities for improvement. The project focused on:

Engaging frontline healthcare workers and stakeholders to understand user experiences.
Identifying behavioural, operational, and system-level barriers affecting commodity availability.
Facilitating collaborative problem-solving and solution development.
Generating insights to inform more responsive supply chain interventions.
Testing and refining ideas based on stakeholder feedback.
Promoting user-centred approaches to health systems strengthening.

The project recognised that sustainable improvements are more likely when solutions are designed with the people who use and manage systems every day.

The project demonstrated the value of human-centred design as a tool for addressing complex health system challenges. By elevating the voices and experiences of healthcare workers and other stakeholders, the initiative helped uncover practical insights that may not have emerged through traditional approaches alone.

The lessons generated through this work contributed to broader conversations about innovation, service design, and the importance of understanding user needs when strengthening health systems and improving access to essential healthcare commodities.