Latest Resources

Información Para la Calidad del Sistema de Salud en Colombia: Una Propuesta de Revisión Basada en el Modelo Israelí

El objetivo del estudio es contribuir a mejorar la salud en Colombia mediante el desarrollo de un sistema nacional de indicadores de desempeño del sector salud. Para ello se utilizó un análisis descriptivo de datos secundarios de Colombia e Israel que, como Colombia, tiene un modelo de competencia regulada. [from abstract]

Violence Against Health Care Part I : The Problem and the Law

In 2013, new data collected by the ICRC7 showed that the vast majority of violent incidents against health services that took place during 2012 – more than 80 per cent of the 900 or so incidents recorded in twenty-two countries – affected local health-care professionals. A quarter of the people affected by these incidents were killed or wounded, while the remainder of the incidents consisted of beatings, threats, arrests, kidnapping, and other violent occurrences. [from introduction]

Competency-Based Medical Education in Two Sub-Saharan African Medical Schools

This paper presents two medical schools, Makerere University College of Health Sciences and College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, which successfully implemented CBME [Competency-Based Medical Education]. The processes of curriculum revision are described and common themes are highlighted. Both schools used similar processes in developing their CBME curricula, with early and significant stakeholder involvement. [from abstract]

Global Fund Investments in Human Resources for Health: Innovation and Missed Opportunities for Health Systems Strengthening

Since the early 2000s, there have been large increases in donor financing of human resources for health (HRH), yet few studies have examined their effects on health systems. The objective of this paper is to determine the scope and impact of investments in HRH by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund), the largest investor in HRH outside national governments. [adapted from abstract]

Which Intervention Design Factors Influence Performance of Community Health Workers in Low- and Middle-Income Countries? A Systematic Review

Community health workers (CHWs) are increasingly recognized as an integral component of the health workforce needed to achieve public health goals in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Many factors influence CHW performance. A systematic review was conducted to identify intervention design related factors influencing performance of CHWs. [from abstract]

Global Mental Health From A Policy Perspective

This report characterises mental health as a policy issue and outlines why it is frequently overlooked by policy-makers and donors. It draws upon the experience of different social movements across global health to provide lessons for the mental health field. [from introduction]

Against the Odds: Mozambique's Gains in Primary Health Care

Despite numerous persistent challenges – including low quality of care, continuing inequalities and the substantial impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic – Mozambique provides important lessons to other countries aiming to scale up health provision rapidly in a post-conflict setting. These particularly include the importance of focusing on distance and education as barriers to access, using innovative and low-cost human-resource policies to scale up health personnel quickly, and of moving towards more coordinated systems of aid disbursement. [from abstract]

Pathways to Progress: A Multi-Level Approach to Strengthening Health Systems

This report synthesises findings from five country case studies from the health dimension of this project, which focus
on maternal and child health (MCH) (Mozambique,Nepal, Rwanda) and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs)(Cambodia, Sierra Leone). MCH was selected given its centrality in two of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and its ability to act as a proxy for strengthened health systems.

Mental Health in Developing Countries: Challenges and Opportunities in Introducing Western Mental Health System in Uganda

This paper presents a review of the attempt to implement a western-oriented mental health system into
a different culture, specifically a developing country such as Uganda. It draws upon an extensive literature review
and the author’s work in Uganda to identify the lessons learned as well as the challenges of introducing a western-
oriented mental health system in a totally new cultural milieu. [from abstract]

Cost-Effectiveness of Improving Health Care to People with HIV in Nicaragua

Nurses need to participate in CPE to update their knowledge and increase their competencies. This research was carried out to explore their current practice and the future general needs for CPE. [from abstract]

Centre de Documentation Electronique - VIH/sida - Côte d'Ivoire

Le CDE [Centre de Documentation Electronique] se veut un centre de partage et d’échange de connaissances et d’expériences en matière de lutte contre le VIH/sida. Vous trouverez dans cet espace toute information, documents, publications, ainsi que des outils de communication utiles développés par le CCP [ Centre des Programmes de Communication de l’Université de Johns Hopkins] et ses partenaires dans le cadre de la lutte contre le VIH/sida impliquant les jeunes en Côte d’Ivoire. [from introduction]

Adolescents Living with HIV (ALHIV) Toolkit

The resources in this toolkit cover a broad range of topics pertinent to the treatment, care and support of ALHIV including: Training, Treatment Literacy & Adherence, Counseling & Disclosure, Life Skills, Prevention and Reproductive Health, Psychosocial Support, etc.

Learning to Leisure? When Social Media Becomes Educational Media

Social media sites – like Flickr, Facebook, YouTube, FourSquare and Twitter – summon a tapestry of friendship, humour and community between digitally literate citizens around the world. But the role and value of these platforms and portals for education, teaching and learning is neither self-evident nor obvious. Therefore, this article returns to a key early text in the sociology of education: Paul Willis’s Learning to Labour. Willis addressed the injustices within and beyond school. [from abstract]

Reaching Men Who Have Sex with Men in Ghana through Social Media: A Pilot Intervention

The use of social media is a very important avenue for reaching MSM who are not reached by peer educators in Ghana. The method should be adopted as an integral outreach approach for HIV-prevention interventions in the future.[from abstract]

“Hidden on the Social Media”: HIV Education on MSM through Cyber-Educators in Central America

The Pan-American Social Marketing Organization (PASMO) developed a combination prevention intervention in Central America that delivers HIV prevention behavior change communication (BCC) messages, products, services, and referrals to promote improved condom and condom-compatible lubricant use, HIV testing, violence reporting and the use of complementary services. [from abstract]

Perceived Barriers to Accessing Specialized Medical Care in Rural Communities of Ontario: A Pilot Study

Rural residents seeking health care face barriers due to a shortage of healthcare professionals and the travel distance required to obtain medical services. A pilot study was conducted to examine rural residents’ ability to access specialized care. This quantitative pen and paper survey was implemented in two communities with similar health care infrastructure(Tweed, Ontario and Hensall, Ontario). [adapted from abstract]

Progress Toward Universal Health Coverage in ASEAN

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is characterized by much diversity in terms of geography, society, economic development, and health outcomes. The health systems as well as healthcare structure and provisions vary considerably. Consequently, the progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in these countries also varies. This paper aims to describe the progress toward UHC in the ASEAN countries and discuss how regional integration could influence UHC. [from abstract]

Getting Healthier Around the World: Information and Communication Technologies for Child Health and Development

To celebrate Universal Children’s Day 2013, this report was commissioned by Sesame Workshop to achieve two objectives: (1) to explore current and future opportunities in the use of mobile phones and other relevant information and communications technologies (ICTs) for improving the health and development of young children as investments for a better future, and (2) to provide guidance and recommendations for partnerships, institutions or organizations interested in contributing to this field. [from executive summary]

Needs-Based Human Resources for Health Planning in Jamaica: Using Simulation Modelling to Inform Policy Options for Pharmacists in the Public Sector

The purpose of the work described in this paper is to describe the development and application of a needs-based HRH simulation model for pharmacists in Jamaica’s largest health region. [from abstract]

Financing Medical Education through the Private Sector

From 2010 through 2013, the SHOPS project implemented a series of pilot activities to explore the feasibility of introducing private sector health education financing mechanisms. SHOPS explored private sector solutions to help meet ambitious targets from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief for training new health care workers. This report shares the project’s work with private pre-service education financing in Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia.

The Composition of the Social Service Workforce in HIV/AIDS-Affected Contexts

This technical report is intended to help the field move toward a common understanding of functions associated with different cadres within the social service workforce, titles associated with workers who perform these functions, and education or training that is typically associated with these cadres. [from resource]

The Drivers of Universal Health Care in South Africa: The Role of Ideas, Institutions and Actors

This paper outlines the opportunities and challenges posed by the proposed NHI [National Health Insurance] reforms in South Africa. It begins by explaining the country’s current system of health care provision including its human resource structure, functions and cost implications. It then summarizes the deficits and limitations of the current two-tiered health system and discusses what NHI is trying to achieve within this context and how it hopes to address the problems. [from summary]

Family Planning (Planin)

A 16-hour training providing information to Community Health Workers regarding defining family planning and describing various methods of family planning, explaining advantages of family planning at the individual, family, and community levels, identify cultural and social barriers to practicing family planning and counseling individuals and couples about the benefits of family planning and how to choose an appropriate method of family planning. [adapted from resource]

Community Health Workers Programme in Luanda, Angola: an Evaluation of the Implementation Process

The Community Health Workers (CHWs) Programme was launched in Luanda, Angola, in 2007 as an initiative of the provincial government. The aim of this study was to assess its implementation process. This is a case study with documental analysis, CHWs reports data, individual interviews and focal groups. [from abstract]

Policy Brief: Strengthening Vital Statistics Systems

The Policy Brief has looked into different systems that produce data on causes of death and laid out some options and potential strategies that countries might follow to rapidly and cost-effectively improve the cause of death information that these systems produce. This in turn would greatly benefit national health planning and increase critical knowledge about disease burden in the region as well as provide accurate information about how it is changing. [from introduction]