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In this issue:
- PtD elects a new Chairperson
- Building a strong supply chain workforce in Ghana
- The transition of the public health supply chain for medical commodities in Kenya
- News from our Board member organizations
- Resource spotlight
- Upcoming events
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PtD elects a new Chairperson
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A recent Board vote saw the election of Lloyd Matowe as PtD's new Chairperson.
Lloyd brings with him two years of experience as PtD’s Deputy Chair, and many years supporting PtD’s mandate. He also has over 20 years of experience strengthening pharmaceutical value chain systems in Africa. Lloyd is currently the Director of Pharmaceutical Systems Africa (PSA).
Lloyd will be officially inaugurated as Chairperson at PtD's upcoming Board meeting which takes place during the Global Health Supply Chain Summit (GHSCS) in Accra in November 2017.
Lloyd replaces outgoing PtD Chairperson, Kevin Etter.
PtD would like to thank Kevin for his indispensable leadership and guidance as Chairperson over the last two years.
The PtD Secretariat looks forward to working with Lloyd to further implement PtD's vision, mission, and strategic goals to promote sustainable workforce excellence in health supply chain management.
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Country case study series
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GHANA
BUILDING A STRONG SUPPLY CHAIN WORKFORCE – THE ROLE OF PRE-SERVICE TRAINING
In Ghana more than 50% of health facilities do not have dedicated supply chain professionals. Although pharmacists and nurses are responsible for the management of commodities at health facilities, they received little to no training in commodity management.
In order to tackle this shortage, an ambitious pre-training strategy was deployed in Ghana to create and rapidly expand the SCM competencies among health care workers.
Exposing pre-service students to key SCM concepts and competencies equipped them with urgently needed knowledge and skills to perform these duties. The pre-service training program led to the rapid integration of SCM modules into the curriculum of health care workers in major schools of nursing and pharmacy in the country.
It is estimated that over 14,000 health workers were equipped with SCM skills over a four-year period, without the need to remove them from their workstations for in-service training. The sustainability and cost-savings of the pre-service training model was also enhanced by utilizing local institutions to lead the customization and delivery of the SCM curriculum to a group of core trainers.
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The goal of the PST strategy in Ghana was to create a continuous supply of health care workers for the Ghana Health Service (GHS) who were competent in SCM before they entered the workforce.
Read the full article on our Stories from our Community of Practice page here (link to stories from our community of practice)
This story was extracted from the original case study authored by Eomba Motomoke. Download the case study
here
Pictured below: Nursing students and their instructor during a supply chain training course.
Picture by Kwesi Playe
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KENYA
TRANSITION OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH SUPPLY CHAIN
In 2004 there were 11 parallel supply chains operating in Kenya. Since then, the country has gone through a significant restructuring, which started with the devolution of healthcare to the 47 counties established with the new Constitution in 2010. The devolution has also seen the rise of the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) as a leading actor, which has increased the efficiency and effectiveness of the supply chain in the country.
KEMSA has been transformed, from being an agency to being an authority; it is now completely independent from Kenya's government. KEMSA has developed a business model under which its customers also include the 47 counties. KEMSA has gone through significant operational changes, involving both human resources (HR) and information technology (IT) initiatives. Over the years, political and technical supply chain champions have laid the ground for increasing performance and availability at the last mile of the health commodities supply chain.
The success of KEMSA’s business model after devolution can be linked to the following areas:
LEADERSHIP
:
There is a clear leadership line in Kenya for public health supply chains. The Minister of Health (MoH) is a permanent member of the KEMSA Board and in charge of ensuring the health system functions.
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In terms of technical leadership, this is spread across 400 staff members, who have adequate supply chain qualification and training. The Board has a mixture of supply chain and pharmaceutical knowledge.
CAPACITY ASSESSMENT
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An assessment based on the
Pamela Steele Associates Ltd. Health Supply Chain Skills Competence Assessment tool
has provided insights regarding the capacity of the KEMSA supply chain and logistics department (it was delivered to approximately 70 people with a response rate of 98%). Staff are provided with training where needed.
KEMSA now funds its own training, with a preference for local providers.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT:
Logistics management information systems (LMIS) and ERP systems are the systems used by KEMSA to collect data and performance indicators are based on these data for each employee. The counties are tracked by the sales team and the sales team are rewarded based on their performance. There are key performance indicators (KPIs) in place to ensure alignment to the strategic plan.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE:
Meetings are regularly scheduled at different levels and data are the backbone of the conversations. The professionaliZation of the supply chain occurs through job evaluation and access to training. Performance appraisal takes place bi-annually and adjustments to job descriptions follow where needed.
COORDINATION:
There is coordination at national and regional level through stakeholder fora, county fora, and technical working groups. Donors outsourcing distribution to KEMSA are supporting a more collaborative environment within the country.
This article is extracted from the the original case study authored by Pamela Steele and Silvia Rossi Tafuri. Download the case study
here
Pictured : Pamela Steele led the focus group discussions with the KEMSA Directors and C
EO
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News from our Board member organizations
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VillageReach
One Step Closer to the First National Health Hotline in Malawi
Chipatala cha pa Foni (CCPF) or "Health Center by Phone" is a sustainable mobile health solution that provides health information and referrals - a vital health resource for many rural communities throughout Malawi. Remote access to health workers reduces the burden on rural clinics, making more efficient use of the limited human resources available in health facilities. Strong partnerships have been key to its success, including the Malawi Ministry of Health and private sector partner
Airtel
, Malawi's largest mobile carrier. With a signed MOU earlier this year, the Malawi Ministry of Health further solidified its commitment to CCPF - an important step in the transition of the mobile health service toward national scale and full government ownership. When complete, CCPF will be the first, government-run national mobile health hotline in Africa.
Learn More
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Hotline worker Omega Sambo answers questions about nutrition, maternal and child health and all general health concerns at the CCPF call center, now located in Lilongwe.
Picture by Paul Joseph Brown
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HRH2030
Supporting Health Worker Data Training in Senegal
HRH2030 and Senegal’s Ministry of Health and Social Action’s Directorate of Human Resources (DRH) recently hosted a workshop to develop DRH staff members’ ability to effectively use the country’s human resources information system (iHRIS). The workshop builds on collaborative efforts to create a full picture of the current and future health workforce in Senegal by improving collection, analysis, and use of health workforce data.
The three-day workshop in July 20176 focused on reducing skills gaps between regional- and central-level staff on the use of the iHRIS software.
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The 20 attendees came from MSAS directorates, services, programs, and central divisions.
Read the full article on HRH2030's iHRIS training support
here
Picture by HRH2030's Project Director in Senegal,
Isaiah Ndong
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Global Health Supply Chain - Procurement and Supply Management project (
GHSC-PSM)
Satellite event at ICASA conference
GHSC-PSM will be hosting the satellite event: “From local decisions to global markets: A symposium on key trends in HIV/AIDS supply chains” at ICASA 2017 on Friday, December 8, 2017, 7:00-8:30 am.
The following topics will be covered:
• New ARVs
• RTK market shaping
• HIV self-testing
• Viral load scale up
This interactive workshop is designed for country-level partners, including ministries of health, logisticians, and implementers. Participants will learn about key USAID objectives and programming, and share how local programs and decisions can impact global goals and markets.
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Indian Resource Center for Public Health Procurement and Supply Management
The IRC is an ecosystem of professionals and organizations who are interested in public health procurement and supply management. It forms a discussion platform for public sector, NGOs and private sector; students and professionals; donors, technical organizations and vendors. The IRC covers topics such as leadership, general management, PSM policies and strategy, HR, financial management, information systems, regulatory, quality, procurement, forecasting, inventory management, distribution, rational use, adoption, uptake of new commodities, and more. Join the IRC
here
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Fighting Malaria with Skilled Leadership
The USAID-funded Leadership, Management, and Governance Project (LMGP) strengthens health systems to deliver more responsive services to more people.
Since 2013, the LMG Project has provided technical assistance to the National Malaria Control Programs (NMCPs) in Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Lao PDR, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo, through the indispensable work and expertise of Senior Technical Advisors. Stories showcasing personnel coaching, doctor-to-doctor training in malaria case management and human resources restructuring for greater efficiency are just some examples of the project’s achievements. Download the publication
here
.
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Working for Health and Growth: Investing in the health workforce
The High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth was established by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in March 2016. It is tasked with making recommendations to stimulate and guide the creation of at least 40 million new jobs in the health and social sectors, and reducing the projected shortfall of 18 million health workers, primarily in low- and lower-middle income countries, by 2030.
The Commission makes ten recommendations that should be read in the context of efforts to strengthen health and social protection systems as well as broader initiatives to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and to meet the targets of the SDGs. Recommendation number three covers Education, Training and Skills of health workers. It advocates for the scaling up of education and lifelong learning need so that all health workers have skills that match the health needs of populations. Download the publication
here
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15th TechNet Conference: Building the next generation of immunization supply chains
October 16 - 20, 2017
Fourth Global Forum on Human Resources for Health
November 13 – 17, 2017
The Fourth Global Forum on Human Resources for Health - Building the health workforce of the future - will be held in Dublin, Ireland, from November 13 - 17. Visit the Forum website at
www.hrhforum2017.ie
for information on the program, schedule, key deadlines and how to register.
10th Global Health Supply Chain Summit (GHSCS)
November 15-17, 2017
The 10th Global Health Supply Chain Summit (GHSCS) will take place from November 15 – 17. This year’s conference theme is: Linking to the future of Global Health Supply Chain Management through enhancing the role of the private sector, technology enablement, and workforce development and empowerment.
For further information on registration and the conference agenda, visit:
http://ghscs.com/
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Or connect with us and become a PtD member:
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