Leadership

CapacityPlus Legacy Series #2

CapacityPlus expanded the evidence base for the importance of human resources management (HRM) and leadership; a compelling case study is the Dominican Republic, which implemented a comprehensive program of HRM strengthening that demonstrates how such an effort can contribute to long-term policy improvements, cost savings, and increased accessibility and use of HIV/AIDS, family planning, and other key services.

In the transition to the post-Millennium Development Goals era, many low and middle-income countries will be making significant shifts in their national health policies. The leadership that is drawn upon to make policy changes tends to be in ministries of health, flagship hospitals, physicians and nurses associations, and social protection entities. Health professional schools are an additional and valuable—yet often overlooked—source of leadership in health reform and health policy-making. This technical brief highlights some examples of how the education and research leadership of health professional schools has engaged, influenced, or obtained resources from national policy-makers and others with significant influence on the health sector. The brief also reviews instances in which different health educational institutions and professional associations have worked to shape national responses to health system needs.

Applying Stakeholder Leadership Group Guidelines in Ghana

Like many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Ghana faces health worker shortages, limiting the country’s likelihood of meeting the Millennium Development Goals. Working together with the stakeholders and partners that make up the Ghanaian health care system, CapacityPlus supported the revitalization of the Ghana Health Workforce Observatory to address key human resources for health issues. This case study discusses the steps taken to revitalize the observatory through the application of Guidelines for Forming and Sustaining Human Resources for Health Stakeholder Leadership Groups. Success factors that contributed to the Observatory’s revitalization are highlighted, along with challenges, lessons learned, and recommendations.

HRH Professional Development at the District Level

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.