Education and training institutions around the globe are struggling to meet the increasing demand for more high-quality health workers. A more business-like approach to operating and managing these institutions would allow schools to produce greater numbers of competent and qualified graduates within budget. This guide includes self-assessment against predefined management standards or good practices, followed by prioritization, goal-setting, planning, implementation, and monitoring of progress. The guide.also provides useful tools to support each step. Learn more about the guide and access tools.
CapacityPlus used three types of leadership approaches—thought leadership, community leadership, and implementing for results leadership—to develop HRH governance and leadership capacity at the country level. Presented at the Prince Mahidol Award Conference in Bangkok (January 26–31, 2015), this poster summarizes the results and outputs achieved in the Dominican Republic, Ghana, Nigeria, and Uganda.
The Office of Health Systems in USAID’s Global Health Bureau selected CapacityPlus’s collaboration with the Dominican Republic as one of its Top Ten Health Systems Strengthening Cases. CapacityPlus supported the Ministry of Health in a process of payroll reform and increased transparency in budgeting practices. The process revealed nearly 10,000 ghost workers—individuals who receive a salary but are not working—who represented approximately 30% of the Ministry’s budget. The Ministry began a phased approach to clean its payroll by reclaiming the salaries of the ghost workers, resulting in savings of over $6 million annually. These savings are being used to improve HIV and other health services through hiring of new health workers, increasing salaries by 10% to provide more equitable remuneration and increase motivation, eliminating user fees, and investing in other health sector reforms, such as setting up a better procurement process for HIV testing kits and antiretroviral drugs. In turn, this reinvestment is contributing to improved service delivery and health status.
“Everything Changed”: An HR Manager’s Path to Strengthening the Health System
August 2013 by Sarah Dwyer
CapacityPlus Voices #14
Effective management of a country’s health workforce is a vital component of a strong health system. Too often, though, human resources management is a weak link in the chain. To support the Dominican Republic Ministry of Health, CapacityPlus conducted a three-part program in leadership and management for central and regional HR managers. Participant Diana Santana shares her dramatic transformation.Read more »
Many countries have committed to a process of decentralizing a range of human resources for health (HRH) responsibilities, decisions, and authorities to subnational or district levels. Such decentralization requires political and organizational adjustments in the way the health care workforce is managed at the subnational level. Health leaders and managers in a decentralized system need to be skilled in such areas as workforce planning, recruitment, deployment, performance management, and retention. Uganda is one country that has embarked on a program to strengthen HRH leadership and management at the district level. This report shares lessons learned from Uganda and—using this experience as a foundation—offers selected suggestions for how other countries might develop and implement HRH professional development programs at subnational levels.
Participants in the Human Resources for Health Leadership and Management Course in Uganda share some perspectives on a program designed to help them address health workforce challenges at the district level. Also available in French.
