Capacity building in the health sector to improve care for child nutrition and development

Abstract Problem Human resources in the public health sector is of prime importance in a limited resource setting country, who at times work in a high-pressure, limited resource environment and where skilled staff continue to remain in short supply. The role of Human Resource for Health (HRH) team responsible for managing this health workforce is crucial. They play an important role in improving the human resource practices and creating an enabling organizational culture for optimal resource utilization. The paper explores the profile of the HRH teams of the states of India, their knowledge levels, and perceptions of their role. Methods The participants were HR Managers from 29 states of India who look after HRH in National Health Mission and State Health Departments. Cross-sectional survey tool was used for data collection. Quantitative data analysis included univariate and bivariate analysis. One Way ANOVA test of significance and post-hoc tests using Tukey's method was used to ascertain the groups with significant difference. Results Most of the HRH team members are postgraduates or have management background. Their experience varies from <1year to > 25 years. Mostly of them perceive their role to be limited to implementing bare essential HRM practices, mostly administrative. The educational qualification of the members did not have any significant bearing on their technical knowledge related to HRM practices; but their experience in public health sector showed a significant association. Lessons This study lends evidence to the principle that professionals who have been in the system for long, know about HRH and the associated policies better, and hence may be better equipped to handle HRH and establish good HR Management (HRM) systems. Better role clarity among the HRH teams, expansion of their current scope of work to include advanced practices of HRM and continuous capacity building mechanisms are needed to help strengthen the development and management of HRH. Key messages This study, a first of its kind in the country, lend evidence related to the principle for deciding the profile of team who should be entrusted with managing and development of HRH. The Study gives evidence to focus on the role clarity of HRH to zero down their knowledge and skills gaps and enhance their competencies through better capacity building.

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Monitoring and Evaluation Practices and Performance of County Maternal Health Programmes

European Scientific Journal ESJ ◽

10.19044/esj.2021.v17n37p39 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 (37) ◽

pp. 39

Author(s):

John Gatimu ◽

Christopher Gakuu ◽

Anne Ndiritu

Keyword(s):

Maternal Health ◽

Capacity Building ◽

Health Sector ◽

Monitoring And Evaluation ◽

Evaluation Practices ◽

Health Sector Reforms ◽

And Performance ◽

Descriptive Survey ◽

The Relationship ◽

Health Programmes

The study sought to establish the relationship between monitoring and evaluation practices and performance of County Maternal Health programmes in Kenya. The combined monitoring and evaluation practices included planning for M&E, stakeholder engagement, capacity building for M&E, and M&E data use. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. To obtain 282 respondents, stratified random sampling was used. A self-administered structured questionnaire was the study's research instrument. Using descriptive narratives, qualitative data was analyzed within specific themes. Quantitative data was analyzed descriptively using measures of central tendencies and measures of dispersion. Regression was conducted for testing the study hypotheses. Data was presented using frequency tables. The study found that stakeholders’ engagement in M&E and capacity building for M&E influenced the performance of County Maternal Health Programmes in Kenya. The study also found that the respondents agreed that planning for M&E and the data management for M&E. This implied that the combined monitoring and evaluation practices influence performance of County Maternal Health Programmes in Kenya.The study found a strong correlation between the performance of county maternal health programmes and combined monitoring and evaluation practices. The study concluded that combined planning for M&E monitoring and evaluation practices influenced the performance of county maternal health programmes. The study suggests that management develop an effective methodology as well as raise awareness of M&E activities for the success of the project. The study also suggests that human resources issues such as workers charged with monitoring and evaluation ought to have technical capabilities, and roles and duties of monitoring and evaluation personnel should be outlined at the start of projects. To ensure M&E sustainability health sector reforms, investments in strong and vibrant technical harmonization platforms that can sustain the change agenda at all times and every required level.

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Health sector capacity building

New Directions for Philanthropic Fundraising ◽

10.1002/pf.31 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 2003 (40) ◽

pp. 29-50

Author(s):

Dana R. Todsen

Keyword(s):

Capacity Building ◽

Health Sector

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Development of the Healthy Work Collaborative: Findings From an Action Research Study to Inform a Policy, Systems, and Environmental Change Capacity-Building Initiative Addressing Precarious Employment

Health Promotion Practice ◽

10.1177/1524839920953116 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

pp. 41-51

Author(s):

Christina Welter ◽

Elizabeth Jarpe-Ratner ◽

Tessa Bonney ◽

Eve C. Pinsker ◽

Elizabeth Fisher ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Promotion ◽

Action Research ◽

Capacity Building ◽

Occupational Safety ◽

Health Sector ◽

Complex Problem ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Precarious Employment ◽

Healthy Work ◽

Policy Systems

Precarious employment (PE) is a complex problem that affects an increasing number of workers across all economic sectors who experience low wages, hazardous conditions, and few benefits, and results in adverse health outcomes. PE is characterized by nontraditional work arrangements, precluding workplace-based interventions. Policy, systems, and environmental initiatives that engage cross-sectoral stakeholders may be an applicable health promotion approach to address PE. The University of of Illinois at Chicago Center for Healthy Work’s Healthy Communities through Healthy Work (HCHW) is an outreach project of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health–funded Center of Excellence for Total Worker Health that conducted a multiphased qualitative action research (AR) study. AR designs may be a novel approach to develop initiatives to address problems like PE. This article reports on HCHW’s first AR phase to answer four research questions: (1) What are participants’ perceptions of PE? (2) What are participants’ perceptions of their roles in addressing PE? (3) What initiatives are under way that address PE? and (4) How can the findings be used to facilitate opportunities for healthy work? Key informant interviews with health (public health and health care; N = 23) and labor sector organizations (worker centers, worker advocacy organizations, and unions; N = 21) were conducted. Data were thematically analyzed alongside a chart-based content analysis, and shared in 11 key stakeholder meetings. Findings revealed an opportunity for the labor sector to improve health sector readiness to address PE in the context of health, and were used to develop the Healthy Work Collaborative, a cross-sectoral health promotion capacity building policy, systems, and environmenta change initiative to address PE.

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Public health and health promotion capacity at national and regional level: a review of conceptual frameworks

Journal of Public Health Research ◽

10.4081/jphr.2014.199 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Christoph Aluttis ◽

Stephan Van den Broucke ◽

Cristina Chiotan ◽

Caroline Costongs ◽

Kai Michelsen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Health Promotion ◽

Capacity Building ◽

Health Sector ◽

Geographical Location ◽

Organizational Structures ◽

Regional Level ◽

Conceptual Frameworks ◽

The Core ◽

Set Up

The concept of capacity building for public health has gained much attention during the last decade. National as well as international organizations increasingly focus their efforts on capacity building to improve performance in the health sector. During the past two decades, a variety of conceptual frameworks have been developed which describe relevant dimensions for public health capacity. Notably, these frameworks differ in design and conceptualization. This paper therefore reviews the existing conceptual frameworks and integrates them into one framework, which contains the most relevant dimensions for public health capacity at the country or regional level. A comprehensive literature search was performed to identify frameworks addressing public health capacity building at the national or regional level. We content-analysed these frameworks to identify the core dimensions of public health capacity. The dimensions were subsequently synthesized into a set of thematic areas to construct a conceptual framework which describes the most relevant dimensions for capacities at the national or regional level. The systematic review resulted in the identification of seven core domains for public health capacity: resources, organizational structures, workforce, partnerships, leadership and governance, knowledge development and country specific context. Accordingly, these dimensions were used to construct a framework, which describes these core domains more in detail. Our research shows that although there is no generally agreed upon model of public health capacity, a number of key domains for public health and health promotion capacity are consistently recurring in existing frameworks, regardless of their geographical location or thematic area. As only little work on the core concepts of public health capacities has yet taken place, this study adds value to the discourse by identifying these consistencies across existing frameworks and by synthesising them into a new framework. The framework proposed in this paper can act as a theoretical guide for academic researchers and institutions to set up their own public health capacity assessment.

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Family Physician Perceptions of Climate Change, Migration, Health, and Healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Exploratory Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18126323 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (12) ◽

pp. 6323

Author(s):

Charlotte Scheerens ◽

Els Bekaert ◽

Sunanda Ray ◽

Akye Essuman ◽

Bob Mash ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Capacity Building ◽

Primary Healthcare ◽

Exploratory Study ◽

Health Sector ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

And Migration

Although family physicians (FPs) are community-oriented primary care generalists and should be the entry point for the population’s interaction with the health system, they are underrepresented in research on the climate change, migration, and health(care) nexus (hereafter referred to as the nexus). Similarly, FPs can provide valuable insights into building capacity through integrating health-determining sectors for climate-resilient and migration-inclusive health systems, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Here, we explore FPs’ perceptions on the nexus in SSA and on intersectoral capacity building. Three focus groups conducted during the 2019 WONCA-Africa conference in Uganda were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using an inductive thematic approach. Participants’ perceived interactions related to (1) migration and climate change, (2) migration for better health and healthcare, (3) health impacts of climate change and the role of healthcare, and (4) health impacts of migration and the role of healthcare were studied. We coined these complex and reinforcing interactions as continuous feedback loops intertwined with socio-economic, institutional, and demographic context. Participants identified five intersectoral capacity-building opportunities on micro, meso, macro, and supra (international) levels: multi-dimensional and multi-layered governance structures; improving FP training and primary healthcare working conditions; health advocacy in primary healthcare; collaboration between the health sector and civil society; and more responsibilities for high-income countries. This exploratory study presents a unique and novel perspective on the nexus in SSA which contributes to interdisciplinary research agendas and FP policy responses on national, regional, and global levels.

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Implementing living evidence to inform health decisions: A strategy for building capacity in health sector (Protocol)

Open Research Europe ◽

10.12688/openreseurope.14041.1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 ◽

pp. 114

Author(s):

María Ximena Rojas-Reyes ◽

Gerard Urrutia Chuchí ◽

Gabriel Rada ◽

Pablo Alonso ◽

David Rigau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health System ◽

Capacity Building ◽

Evidence Synthesis ◽

Health Sector ◽

Real Life ◽

Effective Capacity ◽

Implementation Framework ◽

Health Decisions ◽

Evidence Model ◽

Framework Development

Every day important healthcare decisions are made with incomplete or outdated information about the effects of the different health care interventions available, what delivers the best value for the health system and where more research is needed. It is necessary to invest in strategies that allow access to reliable and updated evidence on which to base health decisions. The objective is to develop and evaluate a strategy for building the capacity among different actors of a country’s health system to implement the model known as “Living Evidence” [LE] in the evidence synthesis and dissemination of knowledge transfer [KT] products to inform health decisions. The study will involve professional members of health system organizations in charge of developing KT-products to inform health decisions. The project will be developed in three complementary phases: 1) LE-implementation framework development through review of the literature, brainstorming meetings, user testing and expert consultation; 2) training in LE tools and strategies; 3) developing LE synthesis for KT-products by applying the framework to real-life diverse situations. To achieve the capacity building strategy assessment goal, several surveys and interviews will take place during the process to assess: 1) the LE-implementation framework for the incorporation of LE synthesis in the development of KT-products; 2) the training workshops; 3) the whole capacity-building strategy used for health system organizations be able of implementing the LE as part of the KT-products they regularly produce. The expected results are an effective capacity building strategy for health system organizations to implement the living evidence model in different KT products; a LE-implementation framework to be applicable to any country or region for incorporate LE in the KT-products; LE synthesis for KT-products directly applicable to the real-setting situations; integration of Epistemonikos-L.OVE platform for keeping the LE process in the development and updating of KT-products.

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Foreign Health Sector Capacity Building and the U.S. Military

Military Medicine ◽

10.7205/milmed-d-11-00087 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 177 (3) ◽

pp. 296-301 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Edwin K. Burkett

Keyword(s):

Capacity Building ◽

Health Sector ◽

The U.S

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Clinical presentation and improvised management of neonatal pneumothorax in the setting of a low-resource country: Conakry, Guinea

BMJ Case Reports ◽

10.1136/bcr-2020-235801 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (3) ◽

pp. e235801

Author(s):

Maria Bea Merscher Alves ◽

N'fanly Conté ◽

Ibrahima Sory Diallo ◽

Matthias Roth-Kleiner

Keyword(s):

Child Nutrition ◽

Health Sector ◽

Tension Pneumothorax ◽

Case Series ◽

Drainage Systems ◽

Scarce Resources ◽

Low Resource ◽

Thoracic Drainage ◽

Life Threatening ◽

Chest X Ray

Two neonates were presented at the Neonatology Department of the Institute of Child Nutrition and Health in Conakry, Guinea, with tension pneumothoraces as confirmed by chest X-ray. They were initially managed with needle thoracentesis but required continuous thoracic drainage. Due to scarce resources in the public health sector, no prepacked and dedicated pleural drainage systems were available as is the case in many developing countries. Therefore, we fabricated an improvised underwater seal drain out of a plastic infusion bottle and a Heimlich valve out of a vicryl fingerstall. Both devices have shown to be effective. Pneumothorax is a common and potentially life-threatening disease in neonates that often requires prompt treatment. This case series demonstrates how tension pneumothorax in two newborns was successfully managed by improvising different chest drainage systems. The depicted techniques shall serve as an instruction manual to healthcare professionals working in low-resource settings and facing similar challenges.

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Participatory Nutrition Capacity Assessment and Capacity Development in Six Regions of Ethiopia

Current Developments in Nutrition ◽

10.1093/cdn/nzab035_105 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_2) ◽

pp. 197-197

Author(s):

Tadele Yitaferu

Keyword(s):

Child Nutrition ◽

Technical Assistance ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Health Sector ◽

Capacity Development ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Capacity Assessment ◽

Development Plans ◽

The Government ◽

Shared Commitment

Abstract Objectives The multi-faceted causes of malnutrition make capacity development in nutrition complex. Defining capacity development actions requires an understanding of the landscape actors utilize to address the determinants. Thus, six regional health bureaus (RHB) in Ethiopia, in collaboration with Alive & Thrive (A&T), conducted participatory capacity assessments to identify capacity strengths and gaps, and co-developed appropriate maternal, infant, and young child nutrition (MIYCN) capacity development plans linked to achieving targets outlined in the national nutrition program. Methods From April to June 2019, 143 nutrition practitioners in six regions of Ethiopia conducted rapid participatory assessments of their respective regional capacity. They used an adapted assessment tool based on WHO's six system building blocks, and a four-level scoring guide to identify MIYCN capacity strengths and gaps on 87 statements of excellence. Validated by RHB's leadership, the assessors and A&T co-developed region-specific MIYCN capacity development plans for areas rated ‘poor’ and ‘fair’. Results An aggregate assessment score for six regions revealed presence of adequate MIYCN implementation capacity – excellent (25.3%), moderate capacity with basic ones in place or in use – good (37.9%), low capacity needing attention – ‘fair’ (23.6%), and no capacity or critical capacity limitation needing urgent attention – ‘poor’ (9.4%). Using a prioritization matrix, MIYCN-focused performance strengthening plans were designed, tailored to each region's context. Beginning in July 2019, the six RHBs incorporated key MIYCN improvement action items targeted towards ‘poor’ and ‘fair’ performance areas with relevant indicators into their annual plans, budget structure, and M&E framework. A&T and other partners provided technical assistance and coordinated their efforts with RHBs to spirally build regional MIYCN implementation capacities. Conclusions The participatory capacity assessment served to establish a baseline of existing MIYCN implementation capability; and create a strong and shared commitment within the health sector identifying areas for improvement that can be addressed by the government, with little or no external assistance. Funding Sources The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

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