Management

iHRIS Champions in Ghana Share Success with Using Health Workforce Data

Sarah Dwyer — Thu, 20 Nov 2014 17:46:28 +0000

Like many of his fellow Ghanaians, Obeng Asomaning wanted to use his skills to help his country. As a new graduate with a degree in health service planning and management, he landed a job at the Ministry of Health’s Regional Health Office in Ashanti Region. Quickly he saw that the office was struggling to access information about the health workforce. How many midwives worked in the regional hospital? How many vacancies were there in Kwabre District? How many health workers will likely retire next year? The paper-based information system yielded no quick answers.

Answers to these kinds of questions are important because the country has a critical shortage of health workers. There are only 13.6 health workers for every 10,000 people, well below the minimum recommended threshold of 22.8 health workers per 10,000 population. To improve the population’s health outcomes, Ghana needs to make the most of the health workforce it currently has while working to increase their numbers.

Author's name:

Gracey Vaughn

Publication Date:

November 2014

“I Made Some Changes”: A Nurse/Midwife’s Experience with Leadership and Management Training

Sarah Dwyer — Fri, 01 Aug 2014 15:41:53 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Maternal Health Task Force blog as part of the “Supporting the Human in Human Resources” blog series cohosted by the Maternal Health Task Force and Jacaranda Health.

“Things were really a bit appalling.”

That’s what conditions at her rural health center felt like to Habiba Shaban Agong, a senior nursing officer and midwife in Uganda.

She says she loves her profession. “In midwifery I do a lot,” she adds proudly. “I help mothers in carrying out their pregnancies. During deliveries I help them to conduct live babies—to make a better future.” But it pained her that her facility wasn’t able to deliver the high quality of services the community deserved.

For starters, there weren’t nearly enough health workers to meet the demand. Each department had only “about one human resource working day and night,” Habiba says. “They get exhausted, and that can hinder service delivery.”

Author's name:

Sarah Dwyer

Publication Date:

July 2014

Empowered Health Workers Improve Health Care, One Facility at a Time

Carol Bales — Tue, 15 Apr 2014 19:01:30 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Frontline Health Workers Coalition blog.

“What inspires me is when I see patients critically ill and then recovering, laughing, smiling—I feel great,” says Agnes Masagwayi, a senior clinical health officer in Mbale District, Uganda. “I love my job with all my heart.”

But her health facility, she admits, was in “a bad state.” Running water was sporadic. Essential drugs ran out. Space for maternity care was so limited that many women delivered babies on the floor. Infection control was poor. And there weren’t nearly enough health workers to meet the demand.

Author's name:

Sarah Dwyer

Publication Date:

April 2014

Improving Health Workforce Leadership and Management

Sarah Dwyer — Mon, 07 Oct 2013 17:11:13 +0000

To improve health services, Uganda is focusing on the people that provide quality care. In our new video, Ugandan health workers, managers, and leaders show how the country’s efforts are paying off—and how service delivery has improved. The following story highlights one aspect of this work.

Dr. John Baptist Waniaye was working as a medical officer when he realized he wanted to take on a new role. “I opted to go into management for health [because] I realized that there are gaps which when you’re a leader and a manager you can easily fix and make the environment very good for the health workers. And that is my drive—I want to see that health workers have what they need in order to offer their services and that our patients are happy.”

Author's name:

Sarah Dwyer

Publication Date:

October 2013

Empowering HR Staff in the Dominican Republic to Play an Active Role in Improving Health Services

Carol Bales — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 19:43:05 +0000

When I came to work at the Directorate of Health for Region V, I was very shy and afraid to express myself. I thought that my opinions, my ideas, my views, might not be well received.

But everything changed after the training I received from the CapacityPlus project that has taught me to grow as a person and as a professional.

The project has taught me to believe in myself—that I can do quality work, I can defend my views and negotiate with my superiors, the human resources manager and regional director of health, particularly about HR processes. When something is not right—that is, not according to laws and regulations—I have to point it out and be able to explain why.

Author's name:

Diana Santana, guest blogger

Publication Date:

August 2013

El Proyecto me enseñó a comprender el rol del área de recursos humanos en la calidad de los servicios de salud

Carol Bales — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 19:42:30 +0000

Cuando vine a trabajar a la Dirección Regional V de Salud, era muy tímida, tenía miedo de expresarme. Pensaba que tal vez mis opiniones, mis ideas, mis puntos de vista, no iban a ser bien recibidos.

Pero todo cambió a partir de la capacitación que recibí en el proyecto CapacityPlus, que me ha enseñado a crecer como persona y como profesional.

El proyecto me ha enseñado a creer en mí. En que sí puedo hacer mi trabajo con calidad, a defender mis puntos de vista y a negociar con mis superiores: la gerente de Recursos Humanos y el Director Regional de Salud, principalmente en lo concerniente a los procesos. Cuando algo no está correcto, es decir, apegado a las leyes y los reglamentos, tengo los argumentos para señalarlo.

Author's name:

Diana Santana, guest blogger

Publication Date:

August 2013