> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.phbhealth.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# What PHB is

> PHB in plain words: one health number for life, many places of care, and a human help line.

PHB is a health network for Nigeria. It links patients, hospitals, pharmacies, labs and PHB's own help line through one shared system.

## The idea in one sentence

Every patient gets one **Health Point Number (HPN)** for life, and every place of care on PHB works from the same record, with the patient's permission.

## Who is on PHB

| Who | What they do on PHB |
| - | - |
| **Patients** | Register, book care, see their records, pay from a wallet, share their record, manage family members. |
| **Hospitals** | Register and check in patients, triage, treat, prescribe, admit, take payments. |
| **Pharmacies** | Dispense prescriptions, record over-the-counter sales, register patients at the counter. |
| **Labs** | Receive specimens, enter results and release them. |
| **The Care Line** | PHB's own team. They call patients back and help them get care. |

## What a facility does, and what PHB does

A **facility** is a hospital, pharmacy or lab that is on PHB. Each facility runs its own people and its own prices. PHB runs the network itself.

| The facility does | PHB does |
| - | - |
| Invites and manages its own staff | Creates the facility and invites its first owner |
| Sets its departments, wards, beds and prices | Runs the patient app, USSD and the Care Line |
| Treats patients and takes payment | Reviews independent pharmacy applications |
| Sees its own audit log | PHB's administrators have no screen that opens a patient's record |

## Ways a patient reaches PHB

* **The web app** on a phone or computer, at `/login` and `/register`.
* **USSD** on any phone, by dialling `*347*731#`. No smartphone or data needed.
* **In person**, at a hospital front desk or a pharmacy counter on PHB.
* **The Care Line**, by asking for a call back.

<Note>
  Some parts of PHB are still being built. Screens mark them **Soon** or **Not available yet**. See [Feature status](/reference/feature-status) before you promise a patient anything.
</Note>

## Where to go next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Find your guide" icon="compass" href="/getting-started/find-your-role">
    Pick your job and go straight to your guide.
  </Card>

  <Card title="The HPN" icon="id-card" href="/getting-started/the-hpn">
    What the health number is and why there must only be one.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Portal map" icon="map" href="/portal-map">
    Where each kind of user signs in.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Glossary" icon="book" href="/reference/glossary">
    Words you will see on PHB screens.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>


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