Measurement & Analytics

IQVIA Africa Health Summit

ihadmin2 — Thu, 12 Jan 2023 20:27:54 +0000

IQVIA Africa Health Summit ihadmin2 January 12, 2023

November 16, 2022 - November 17, 2022

The IQVIA Africa Health Summit is a complimentary in-person event which brings together inspiring clinical research and public health experts to share knowledge and exchange ideas about how together we can advance Africa's health through data, technology and innovative research.

IQVIA

https://www.events.iqvia.com/event/e074e714-f672-4ed7-b2a5-239032b5f6a5/regProc…

Learn more

Our Participation

Panel Discussions

African Lessons for Future Pandemic Preparedness

Date(s):	November 16, 2022 02:00pm - 02:45pm EAT (06:00am - 06:45am EST)
More Information:	Global thought leaders from the public and private sectors will discuss what can be learned from African countries’ responses to the pandemic and key priorities for addressing remaining vulnerabilities and strengthening health systems going forward.

Participants

Janet Muriuki

Senior Director Health Workforce Development (interim) and Country Director – Kenya

Kenya Digital Health Measurement & Analytics Health Workforce & Systems

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Using Data to Improve Quality and Outcomes of Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Services in Tanzania

kmelton — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 19:24:24 +0000

Using Data to Improve Quality and Outcomes of Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Services in Tanzania 2021 kmelton November 03, 2021 Download

Technical Briefs: Tanzania's Tohara Plus Program

Robust Monitoring, Mentoring, and Training to Optimize the Quality of Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Services

Mobile Clinic Vans Make Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Services Attractive to More Adult Men in Tanzania

A Three-Pronged Model for Stakeholder Engagement: Analysis, Transparency, and Empowerment

A Decision-to-Action Mental Journey That Increased Utilization of VMMC Services Among Fisherfolks in Lake Victoria Islands, Tanzania

Tohara Journey: Integrating a Human-Centered Design Approach into a Mobile App to Enhance Uptake of Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision in Tanzania

Countries Tanzania

Projects Tohara Plus

Topics HIV & AIDS Measurement & Analytics Measurement and Evaluation

By Kija Nyalali, Lucy Mphuru, Anne Fitzgerald Vinluan

6 Ways South Sudan Is Using Data to Tackle Its HIV Epidemic—and Prepare for Future Pandemics

kseaton — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 16:05:43 +0000

6 Ways South Sudan Is Using Data to Tackle Its HIV Epidemic—and Prepare for Future Pandemics kseaton November 03, 2021

November 03, 2021

Here's what I'm most proud of in helping shape the future of health care in this country.

I work in South Sudan for IntraHealth International. A lot of people might not realize why collecting and using data efficiently are so important for health services here. But the data we collect inform everything we do, from figuring out how many people need antiretroviral treatment and how many health workers are needed at a specific health facility to helping the government and other funders determine how much to spend on public health services in South Sudan in a year.

For the past 15 years, IntraHealth has been helping the South Sudan government create better systems and improve health services. Here are some of our approaches I’m most proud of—because they have changed health care in South Sudan and will have lasting impact on the future of health care in the country.

1. The latest tools.

Seven years ago, data about health services in South Sudan were being sent by email at the county and state levels and were then transmitted via Excel spreadsheet. Now, health officials can access data in real time.

We’ve helped achieve this by working with our government colleagues to use the right data collection tools in facilities and communities, including customizing them for the District Health Information Software 2 (DHIS2) we rolled out for data reporting and management. This has been a critical component to HIV services and program funding in the country.

We helped South Sudan transition from DHIS1.4 to the web-based DHIS2, an open-source web-based health management information system that allows us to capture more data in a streamlined way. We rolled it out in all ten states, 80 counties, and about 84 facilities that provide HIV services. We’ve worked with our partners like The Global Fund, United Nations Development Programme, World Bank, World Health Organization, and Gavi to implement this system and make sure it can function properly for everyone.

2. Surveillance and surveys.

Before we started conducting surveillance, the data were scarce. But then we worked with the Ministry of Health to conduct key population surveys, which led to changes in our approaches.

When the data showed high infection rates among female sex workers (38% in Juba, for example), we improved our HIV services for this key population. The data we collected helped us scale up the E2A project from three cities to six.

The data also led The Global Fund to increase funding for the country to prioritize key population interventions. Right now, we are supporting the key population program to make sure these women are receiving services. And we are scaling up to other towns.

We are also helping the ministry conduct routine monitoring in 59 facilities and are using those data in conjunction with program data for country planning, projections, and estimations of the people living with HIV for UNAIDS Global AIDS monitoring reports.

3. Site-level field supervision.

We worked with the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to recruit six local field officers and sent them to health facilities so they can supervise the program and use data to support decision-making at the facilities. This program showed significant success, so we scaled it up. Right now, we have about 22 field officers and we just finished recruiting four more who are going through intensive orientation and training.

We use the granular site management (GSM) system—an intensive onsite program data review—and quality improvement approaches to improve health workers’ performance, grow the HIV program, and improve the quality of HIV services. The field officers work with their teams to collect data daily and submit them on a weekly basis to our staff who generate weekly and monthly dashboards. These are used to review performance and create improvement plans.

4. Institutional-level support.

We provide this to the Ministry of Health and The Global Fund country coordinating mechanisms, and the Research and Ethics Review Board. We worked with The Global Fund to set up the county coordinating mechanisms and recruit staff to oversee the secretariat. Now the mechanisms are functioning and providing crucial oversight.

Turnaround time for requests was 2-6 months, but now it’s 2-4 weeks.

We also noticed that there was a weak ethics review board in South Sudan was struggling greatly. They reviewed all the human research conducted in the country and there were a lot of delays. So we helped strengthen the board by making sure it was fully reconstituted, members were trained and active, and the secretariat could function to its full potential.

Turnaround time for requests to the review board was 2-6 months, but now it’s 2-4 weeks. It’s very important for any country to have this, given human subject research issues.

5. South Sudan Public Health Institute.

We are currently working to establish and complete a strategic plan for this new institute, which is like the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but in South Sudan. It’s a key pillar for disease prevention, detection, and response. This is a historic project for the country and it’s something we will be part of for many years. It will help shape the future of global health in South Sudan.

6. COVID-19 pandemic response.

When South Sudan’s first case of COVID-19 was identified in early April 2020, we immediately joined the country’s pandemic response.

We seconded staff to support the national steering committee and helped establish the COVID-19 data management unit, COVID-19 data management technical working group, and the COVID-19 webpage on the Ministry of Health’s website to provide real-time updates on COVID-19 to key stakeholders. Using the DHIS2 surveillance tracker—the same software that we were already using to strengthen HIV data collection and use—we are now capturing COVID-19 data for testing and vaccines.

Strengthening National Capacity for Integrated HIV/AIDS Health Data Collection, Use, and Dissemination in Support of an Evidence-based Response in South Sudan is funded by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

By Alfred Okiria

Project director, South Sudan

Strengthening National Capacity for Integrated HIV/AIDS Health Data Collection, Use, and Dissemination in Support of an Evidence-based Response in South Sudan HIV & AIDS Digital Health Measurement & Analytics Global health security South Sudan

Photo by Clément Tardif for IntraHealth International.

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For Stronger HIV Services in South Sudan, This Team Looks to the Data

kseaton — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 18:01:27 +0000

For Stronger HIV Services in South Sudan, This Team Looks to the Data kseaton October 21, 2021

October 21, 2021

How digital health and data collection are improving health care in the country, despite the many challenges.

What does it take to keep HIV services available despite limited resources, political unrest and violence, and a pandemic?

For Alfred Okiria, IntraHealth International’s project director for the Strengthening National Capacity for Integrated HIV/AIDS Health Data Collection, Use, and Dissemination in Support of an Evidence-based Response in South Sudan project, and his team in South Sudan, the answer is data.

Okiria and his team have been supporting the use of strategic information to improve health services in South Sudan for over a decade, moving from email-based information sharing to a scaled-up, more efficient, and stronger data infrastructure for HIV services, local health facilities, and national COVID-19 response through District Health Information Software 2 (DHIS2), an open-source web-based health management information system.

We sat down with Okiria to find out how they’ve achieved their results and what he sees ahead for the future of HIV services in the country.

1. What are the biggest challenges in making HIV services available in South Sudan?

Data reporting is affected because of the insecurity and internal conflicts. Take Tambura, for example. It’s a high-volume site for HIV services but it has faced insecurity since this summer. The hospital has been closed. Equipment has been lost. Service gets interrupted and most of the population are in camps for internally displaced people. In some areas of the Lakes state facilities had to be closed for about three months due to intertribal clashes.

We’re trying to make sure clients can access services in such unstable regions.

There are regions which are prone to flooding especially Jonglei and Upper Nile states, so when it’s the rainy season some places are cut off completely. Road infrastructure is already poor and there are quite a lot of challenges to move from one point to the other, which affect services, supply deliveries, and data collection. So we’re trying to make sure clients can access services in such unstable regions.

We also have human resources and health infrastructure challenges. There are limited human resources for health in terms of the right number of health workers, their level of skill, where they’re placed, and their level of motivation to support services. This is coupled with limited health care facility infrastructure, especially buildings and space.

As we all know, the pandemic has been a real challenge. The measures that were put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19 included travel restrictions and partial lockdowns, which also affected services. So we’ve been helping the ministry set up DHIS2 for pandemic response, which allows us to capture more data in a streamlined way. And as we speak, we are supporting the DHIS2 COVID-19 surveillance tracker, which will capture data and support the response. We’re also working with the Ministry of Health on a DHIS2 COVID-19 vaccination tracker and with the CDC to set up vaccination sites.

At the end of the day, even though it’s challenging, this data collection and monitoring connects clients to the services they need to be healthy.

2. How has the country’s response to HIV changed over the years?

South Sudan is collecting and using more data about HIV services and clients’ needs than ever before—and using more strategic information to connect people to care.

IntraHealth, has been working in South Sudan since 2006—back before it was an independent country. The Ministry of Health started with six health facilities, working with the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide HIV care and treatment. There were a lot of challenges. There was a lot of stigma and discrimination around HIV in the country, so it was a very difficult start. IntraHealth worked with the South Sudan People's Defense Forces (formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army) to help them set up and coordinate HIV services.

Then we worked with the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Response (PEPFAR) and The Global Fund to slowly scale up, using the data we had to focus on regions where HIV prevalence was high, such as Greater Equatoria. Until 2015, we provided technical assistance to facilities for service delivery, but we had to change to direct service delivery to support sites and help improve the quality of HIV services they offered.

By 2020, PEPFAR was supporting 84 sites up from 48 through different implementing partners —including scaled up services in the Lakes and Western Bahr regions.

In terms of data collection, we had to make sure HIV programs could capture the right data for programming and do so efficiently. There were a lot of challenges—human resources, training, information technology infrastructure, motivating data clerks, and parallel reporting. One was that the HIV data were sitting with the WHO and the ministry didn’t have direct access to it—they had to request the data from the WHO. It should have been the other way around.

We started looking for ways to strengthen these systems, and make sure the ministry has the up-to-date information they need to manage their facilities and health workers. So we transitioned to the web-based health management information system DHIS2. And we switched the process so that the ministry now has direct access to the data. While there are still some significant challenges, the data has drastically improved.

3. But how do data help clients get HIV care and treatment?

All the data we capture at the ministry level every year is used for South Sudan’s annual Country Operational Plan, the US government's plan for annual investments in HIV services. The program data are used to support the argument for increasing resources for HIV services. Based on the data we collected, PEPFAR increased its funding from around US$21 million to $38-40 million this past year. That means more HIV services for the people in South Sudan who need it most.

Data collection and monitoring helps clients receive services and helps health workers bring them back to care.

We also track HIV prevalence among key populations and pregnant mothers. Using this surveillance, we can plan for and mobilize HIV services. We use all of this data to procure the right amount of drugs and supplies.

We also recruit staff who lead data collection and site management at health facilities. We have a weekly dashboard that summarizes the data from each facility, including key indicators such as case identification, retention, and treatment. Field officers use this data to addresses key challenges affecting the HIV program. They monitor program growth and identify solutions for each facility.

We do monthly data reviews at the national level to make adjustments to our programs and make the necessary drugs and services available to people who need them.

At the end of the day, this data collection and monitoring helps clients receive services and helps health workers bring them back to care. It allows us to identify those lost to follow up (client who have interruptions in their treatment), those who have missed appointments, and those who have high viral load to provide them with adherence counseling.

4. What is the future of health care in South Sudan?

As much as there are challenges, there is hope for the future of health care in South Sudan.

Right now, the field officers we work with are building their skills to support HIV services at health facilities in South Sudan. Our dream is that they will become the next generation of leaders and managers in health departments and offices at all levels. We’re helping them build skills to use data for planning and decision making.

That’s a big thing for South Sudan—after all this training and recruitment, these field officers will be staying here to build their careers and build their country’s health systems.

By Alfred Okiria

Project director, South Sudan

By Katherine Seaton

Former communications manager

A nurse draws blood to test for HIV and begins counseling a client at the Saint Bakhita Health Centre in Yei, South Sudan. Photo by Trevor Snapp for IntraHealth International.

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Quality Improvement: The Quiet Hero of Global Health Programs

kseaton — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 17:22:47 +0000

Quality Improvement: The Quiet Hero of Global Health Programs kseaton July 08, 2021

July 08, 2021

5 approaches that can improve health and health workers’ performance.

In my past life, I was a chemical engineer. More specifically, I was a process engineer for Head & Shoulders shampoo.

While my colleagues were working on other process aspects of manufacturing efficiency (faster, cheaper, less waste, etc.) I was finding ways to improve the manufacturing process to make the shampoo more effective at fighting dandruff. In our case, we wanted to fight dandruff without creating any other negative effects on hair (such as changing the feel or the smell).

I didn’t realize my career in shampoo process improvement would directly relate to public health, just under a different name.

What I used to know as process engineering or process improvement in the manufacturing field is known as continuous quality improvement (CQI) in public health. CQI is how we improve the way health care services are delivered to clients, which can transform the health and well-being of communities.

Now I’m a measurement and learning technical advisor at IntraHealth International, where I create and monitor measurable characteristics, such as the number of adolescents that use a family planning method or HIV viral load suppression. Then we track these characteristics closely to see if the changes we make are improving the services we provide to clients all over the world.

For example, in Mali, we used CQI to improve disease surveillance. The changes we made helped health workers report 100% of new cases of meningitis, measles, neonatal tetanus, acute flaccid paralysis/polio, yellow fever, whooping cough, dengue fever, and rabies.

To do my job well, I have to look at all of the quality-improvement approaches and tools I’ve learned over the years and pick wisely. And what I’ve learned might be helpful for your work in global health, too. So here are my thoughts on five CQI approaches.

5 Approaches to CQI

LEAN

Lean focuses on reducing waste in workflows to streamline processes and improve health services. It provides eight different areas in which to minimize waste, as shown in the image below. Read more.

Photo by Dirk Pons, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Six Sigma

While Lean focuses on reducing waste, the Six Sigma approach focuses on reducing errors and variation. Six Sigma improves health system efficiency by identifying and eliminating quality issues in services and focusing on client satisfaction. Six Sigma follows the Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control methodology shown in the image below. Read more.

Photo by Pictofigo, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Model for Improvement

This model requires specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely (SMART) goals and focuses on three measurements: result indicators, process indicators, and “balance” measures (secondary effects of the project). After developing ideas to test, we run sequential plan-do-study-act cycles. For example, you may test a new screening tool once with just one patient. If that is successful, test it with more and more people, reviewing the data and improving the strategy as you go along. Read more.

Photo by Cliffnorman, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Collaborative

This is a variation of the Model for Improvement approach where several different health facilities run improvement projects simultaneously on the same thematic area. The facilities come together for learning sessions periodically so they can discuss successes and lessons learned from other facilities and then implement plan-do-study-act cycles between each learning session. Read more.

Optimizing Performance and Quality (OPQ)

Our signature approach at IntraHealth is called Optimizing Performance and Quality. It’s similar to other quality-improvement approaches, but with the addition of a crucial step called “describe context” that we developed specifically for health facilities, health workers, and health care provision. Stakeholder engagement and leadership is particularly important in this approach. In Senegal, we used OPQ to improve the adolescent post-abortion contraceptive prevalence rate from 17% to 78% in one facility (16% to 28% across three facilities).

Photo by IntraHealth International.

These approaches can also all be combined into hybrid approaches, such as Lean Six Sigma. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we combined OPQ with the Collaborative approach to create Integrated Quality and Performance Management (IQPM). In one facility, this approach drove HIV viral suppression up from 83% to 97% in under six months.

All of these approaches are similar at the core. Be sure to look for approaches governments have already adopted, pilot tests that have already been conducted, or groups that have already been trained.

In the global health field, quality improvement is often overlooked or ignored—but it can be key to a project’s success. We often say CQI is the quiet hero, quickly and silently driving improvements in the quality of health service delivery. It can transform our projects and lead to results that improve lives around the world—substantively and sustainably.

By Sujata Bijou

Senior Measurement and Learning Technical Advisor

Measurement & Analytics

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Global Health Science and Practice Technical Exchange

kseaton — Fri, 02 Apr 2021 16:41:06 +0000

Global Health Science and Practice Technical Exchange kseaton April 02, 2021

April 21, 2021 - April 24, 2021

The Global Health Science and Practice Technical Exchange (GHTechX) is an annual learning forum for global health experts, students, and professionals from a variety of technical areas.

USAID

George Washington University

Global Health: Science and Practice Journal

https://ghtechx.conference.tc/catalog/course/ghtechx

Our Participation

Panel Discussions

Applying a Data-Driven Approach Remotely to Rapidly Respond to COVID-19 Workforce Needs in Kenya and Mali

Date(s):	April 21, 2021 12:15pm - 01:15pm EDT
Presenter(s):	Andrew Brown, Amy Finnegan, Cheick Touré, Janet Muriuki

Together We Decide: Using Behavioral Science and Male Engagement to Improve Contraceptive Uptake in Eastern Uganda

Date(s):	April 22, 2021 08:00am - 09:00am EDT
Presenter(s):	Susan Tino, Jennifer Wesson, Katelyn Bryant-Comstock, Denis Ako-Arrey

We’re In This Together: Designing Inclusive and Equitable Partnerships for FP/RH Progress

Date(s):	April 22, 2021 09:15am - 10:45am EDT
Presenter(s):	Marie Ba, Director, Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit

What Will Health Work in Africa Look Like in 2040? Future Scenarios and a Novel Approach to Produce More Health Workers in Kenya

Date(s):	April 22, 2021 11:00am - 12:00pm EDT
Presenter(s):	Janet Muriuki, Dai Hozumi

Lightning Talk

Using WAHO Accreditation and a Competency-Based Approach to Enhance the Training and Retention of Midwives in Northern Mali

Date(s):	April 22, 2021 11:30am - 12:00pm EDT
Presenter(s):	Cheick Touré

Participants

Denis Ako-Arrey

Chief of party, Regional Health Integration to Enhance Services in Eastern Uganda

Marie Ba

Director of Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit

Andrew Brown

Senior Director, Health Workforce Development

Katelyn Bryant-Comstock

Senior Knowledge Management Specialist

Amy Finnegan

Senior Data Scientist

Dai Hozumi

Chief Technical Officer

Janet Muriuki

Kenya Country Director

Susan Tino

Project Manager - SUPCAP

Cheick Touré

Mali Country Director

Jennifer Wesson

Director of Measurement and Learning

Digital Health Health workforce development Measurement & Analytics

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This is a virtual event.

United States

COVID-19 Workforce Surge Planning Tools – Rapid and Remote COVID Workforce Assessment: A User Guide

mnathe — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 15:00:39 +0000

COVID-19 Workforce Surge Planning Tools – Rapid and Remote COVID Workforce Assessment: A User Guide 2020 mnathe September 10, 2020

This user guide for predicting COVID-19 health workforce staffing needs—prepared by IntraHealth International—serves as a guide for implementing the World Health Organization's Adaptt Surge Planning Support Tool, Health Workforce Estimator, and Contact Tracing Tool.

These tools help governments ensure that frontline health workers are available, trained, and supported to meet surging demand for services due to the pandemic and safeguard the availability of other essential health services.

Download

Topics COVID-19 Measurement & Analytics Global health security Health Workforce & Systems

By Pamela McQuide, Amy Finnegan, Andrew Brown, Katherine Terry

IntraHealth International Urges Action to Protect Frontline Health Workers amid COVID-19 Pandemic

mnathe — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 20:51:19 +0000

IntraHealth International Urges Action to Protect Frontline Health Workers amid COVID-19 Pandemic mnathe April 13, 2020 April 13, 2020

We at IntraHealth International are joining our partners in the Frontline Health Workers Coalition to urge action to protect health workers from on-the-job dangers introduced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Never has there been a more important time to focus on health workers,” said Polly Dunford, IntraHealth’s president and CEO, in Devex last week. “Rarely have they faced such danger on such a massive scale. We have an obligation to keep frontline health workers everywhere safe, including making sure all have the personal protective equipment they need.”

As more health workers get sick, hospitals become shorter-staffed and more overwhelmed.

Worldwide, health workers are facing huge risks as shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE)—along with the longstanding global shortage of health workers—leaves many battling this infectious disease over long shifts and without the proper supplies. As more health workers become sick with—or even die from—coronavirus complications, hospitals become shorter-staffed and more overwhelmed. This leaves communities everywhere more vulnerable to coronavirus as well as everyday health needs, such as services for maternal and child health, HIV, family planning, hypertension, and more.

Read the Frontline Health Workers Coalition’s policy recommendations for COVID-19 response.

IntraHealth is calling for urgent action to protect health workers, including to:

Get personnel and PPE to where it’s needed. We must work with our local partners to determine what data they have available and help aggregate it to inform their decisions on where to deploy health workers and PPE.
Connect health workers to information through digital health. “This is not a time for classroom learning in big groups or for reinventing wheels,” Dunford says. “Our solutions don’t have to be shiny and new—they just have to work.” We should work with local partners in low- and middle-income countries to activate systems and technology that are already in place to connect health workers with real-time updates and education. mHero is a great example of this.
Decongest health facilities. We can do this by helping our partners make greater use of telemedicine and provide multimonth doses of medications, such as antiretroviral therapy for clients who live with HIV.
Spread the word about what works. NGOs can help document and share best practices and adapt policies to scale up burgeoning successes in the COVID response from around the world.
Use data and planning to surge health worker deployment. We can help our government partners aggregate and use data to strategically deploy more health workers during this emergency.
Organize free child care and temporary housing. This will help more health workers—particularly women, who make up the bulk of the health workforce and who tend to have more caretaking responsibilities at home—keep their families safe from infection and lower stress on the job.
Ensure health care for health workers. Health workers should be routinely tested for COVID-19 at no personal cost, and offered counseling when they need it for depression, burnout, and substance abuse. Their own health-related expenses should be fully covered throughout the course of this pandemic.
Listen to and elevate the voices of frontline health workers on exactly what they need. Any and all solutions we offer should be developed with input from health workers.
Tap existing networks. In francophone West Africa, religious leaders and youth ambassadors are taking to social media with crucial messages about COVID-19 and family planning. We should partner with networks like these for fast, low-cost impact.

IntraHealth serves as the secretariat for the Frontline Health Workers Coalition, an alliance of US-based organizations working together to urge greater and more strategic investments in frontline health workers in low- and middle-income countries as a cost-effective way to save lives and foster a healthier, safer, and more prosperous world.

Resources

COVID-19 Response Brief

COVID-19 Digital Health Measurement & Analytics Policy & Advocacy Global health security Workplace Safety

3 Things Frontline Health Workers Need to Battle COVID-19

mnathe — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 13:08:06 +0000

3 Things Frontline Health Workers Need to Battle COVID-19 mnathe April 13, 2020

April 13, 2020

From immediate solutions to long-term sustainability, here’s how NGOs can help.

We are entering week four of the COVID-19 pandemic, which also happens to coincide with World Health Worker Week. Never has there been a more appropriate time to focus on health workers. Rarely have they faced such danger on such a massive scale. We have an obligation to keep frontline health workers everywhere safe, including making sure all have the personal protective equipment, or PPE, they need.

All over the world, we’re seeing reports of health workers who are overworked, underequipped, scared. Some are afraid to go home because they might infect their families. Some are even walking off the job because they don’t have the PPE they need to work safely.

NGOs should be offering solutions that build on existing tools and systems to avoid overtaxing national COVID-response teams.

They deserve on-the-job safety every day, but particularly during a pandemic. We’re expecting them to care for coronavirus patients while also keeping up with all their other everyday demands, including HIV care, family planning services, vaccinations, and so much more.

Here are three things frontline health workers need right now that we must move fast to address:

1. On-the-job protection

This includes PPE, equipment, and up-to-date information and skills on COVID-19. We can:

Use health workforce data to distribute PPE and personnel equitably

Many countries around the world are dealing with equipment shortages right now, but all frontline health workers deserve to be protected on the job. We can work with our local partners to determine what data are available — for example, in a country’s iHRIS, DHIS-2, or other databases — to inform their decisions on where to deploy health workers and how to equitably distribute the supplies they need, including PPE.

We can use the World Health Organization’s guidance on PPE to help partners calculate how much PPE their health workforces need, and then to gather the expertise to procure it locally or regionally — not from the U.S. We can also guide and train local health supply chain managers. This is a specialist skill set, figuring out where supplies are available, judging their quality, and determining how quickly they can be gotten and where they are most needed. We can help mobilize this expertise and work with local authorities to make the most of the supplies they do have.

Use appropriate, available digital health tools to connect health workers to information

This is not a time for classroom learning in big groups or for reinventing wheels. We can work with our local partners in low- and middle-income countries to activate systems and technology that are already in place to connect health workers with real-time updates and education.

Liberia, for example, is now using mHero — a two-way communication platform that was developed during the 2014 Ebola outbreak — to send COVID-19 messages to health workers. mHero works by linking existing health information systems, so it can be put into place quickly.

Our solutions don’t have to be shiny and new — they just have to work.

Spread the word about what works

NGOs can help document and share best practices and adapt policies to scale up burgeoning successes in the COVID-19 response from around the world. Check out the Frontline Health Worker Coalition’s policy recommendations for examples.

2. Relief from burnout

NGOs can work with national response teams to maximize health workers’ impact on the pandemic while also protecting their physical and mental health. We can:

Use data and planning to surge health worker deployment

Whether it’s using the WHO’s Workforce Indicators for Staffing Needs tool or drawing on data from national professional councils, NGOs can help governments aggregate and use data to strategically deploy more health workers during emergencies. The result is fewer unmanageably long shifts for health workers, less understaffing at health facilities, and better health services for everyone.

Organize free child care and temporary housing

This will help more health workers — particularly women, who make up the bulk of the health workforce and who tend to have more caretaking responsibilities at home — keep their families safe from infection and lower stress on the job.

Ensure health care for health workers

The Frontline Health Workers Coalition is advocating for frontline health workers to be a priority when it comes to rolling out rapid diagnostic tests — I couldn’t agree more. Health workers should be routinely tested for COVID-19 at no personal cost, and offered counseling when they need it for depression, burnout, and substance abuse. Their own health-related expenses should be fully covered throughout the course of this pandemic. We can advocate to local decision-makers to make all this happen.

3. Immediate solutions with long-term impact

Right now, NGOs should be offering solutions that build on existing tools and systems to avoid overtaxing national COVID-response teams with untested ideas and advocating for policies that strengthen national health systems overall. NGOs can:

Listen to and elevate the voices of frontline health workers on exactly what they need

Any and all solutions we offer should be developed with input from health workers. They know their needs, their communities, and what works in their contexts. We need to hear their stories and give them a global platform to share their experiences and expertise.

Tap existing networks

In francophone West Africa, religious leaders and youth ambassadors are taking to social media with crucial messages about COVID-19 and family planning. Look for opportunities to partner with networks like these — it doesn’t take any additional funding, and you can do it right away. Those same networks will be powerful allies when it comes to holding governments accountable on any COVID-related commitments they make down the road.

And finally, protect your staff

NGOs can’t help if we’re hobbled by sickness. When I took the helm as the new president and CEO at IntraHealth International in mid-March, COVID-19 had just been declared a pandemic. Since then, we’ve shifted most staff worldwide to telework and are monitoring the needs in each country where we work. It hasn’t been easy — we’ve had the same tech challenges as everyone else. But it’s keeping us safer as we work hard to do all the things I’ve mentioned here.

So stay safe. Take care of each other. We have a long road ahead.

This post was originally published by Devex on April 10, 2020.

This piece is part of IntraHealth's celebration of 40 years of commitment to health workers. Follow along: #TheFutureOf #IntraHealth40 #HealthWorkersCount. And learn more about IntraHealth's response to COVID-19.

By Polly Dunford

Former president and chief executive officer

COVID-19 Community Health Digital Health Health workforce development Leadership and Governance Measurement & Analytics Policy & Advocacy World Health Worker Week Global health security

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Webinar: Integrating Chronic Care in the Health System: Challenges and Opportunities Along the Road to Universal Health Coverage

intrahealth — Wed, 22 May 2019 16:39:41 +0000

Webinar: Integrating Chronic Care in the Health System: Challenges and Opportunities Along the Road to Universal Health Coverage intrahealth May 22, 2019 May 28, 2019 12:00pm EDT

As part of the Sustainable Development Goals, countries around the world are working to provide universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030. This effort requires countries to adapt their health systems to respond to all disease states, including the growing burden of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Many low- and middle-income countries have not prioritized these diseases, and significant disparities in outcomes exist everywhere.

This forward-looking discussion is intended to advance thinking on systems-based approaches and to disseminate actionable recommendations for incorporating chronic disease care in health systems in low- and middle-income countries. Speakers will explore:

New evidence and frameworks from the Medtronic Foundation HealthRise program, the Novartis Foundation's Better Hearts, Better Cities program, and USAID.
Opportunities provided by frontline health workforce strengthening, health information systems, and leadership and governance to advance patient-centered chronic care within the context of UHC.
Perspectives on integrating the financing of noncommunicable disease (NCD) treatment into the broader health system to ensure that countries are prepared to tackle all of their priority health issues.

Sujata Bijou, IntraHealth's senior measurement and learning technical advisor, will present on IntraHealth's work on Better Hearts, Better Cities, in Dakar, Senegal.

Find out more and register.

Abt Associates

Medtronic Foundation

https://mailchi.mp/abtassoc/webinar-integrating-chronic-care-in-the-health-syst…

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Senegal Better Hearts Better Cities - Dakar Noncommunicable Diseases Measurement & Analytics

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2. Surveillance and surveys.

3. Site-level field supervision.

4. Institutional-level support.

5. South Sudan Public Health Institute.

6. COVID-19 pandemic response.

For Stronger HIV Services in South Sudan, This Team Looks to the Data

1. What are the biggest challenges in making HIV services available in South Sudan?

2. How has the country’s response to HIV changed over the years?

3. But how do data help clients get HIV care and treatment?

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Janet Muriuki

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IntraHealth International Urges Action to Protect Frontline Health Workers amid COVID-19 Pandemic

Read the Frontline Health Workers Coalition’s policy recommendations for COVID-19 response.

Read more:

Resources

COVID-19 Response Brief

3 Things Frontline Health Workers Need to Battle COVID-19

1. On-the-job protection

Use health workforce data to distribute PPE and personnel equitably

Use appropriate, available digital health tools to connect health workers to information

Spread the word about what works

2. Relief from burnout

Use data and planning to surge health worker deployment

Organize free child care and temporary housing

Ensure health care for health workers

3. Immediate solutions with long-term impact

Listen to and elevate the voices of frontline health workers on exactly what they need

Tap existing networks

And finally, protect your staff

Webinar: Integrating Chronic Care in the Health System: Challenges and Opportunities Along the Road to Universal Health Coverage

Our Participation