Human Resources Management

This study found that limited data collection systems and lack of exit interviews has meant that up-to-date, reliable and accurate data regarding all exiting health workers (HW) (not only those who intend to emigrate) are not readily available. Without such datasets, the dynamics of mobility and migration within the Pacific health workforce remain poorly understood and the development of strategies to retain HW severely hampered. [from author]

The aim of this study is to explore clinicians’ journeys towards management positions in hospitals, in order to identify potential drivers and barriers to management recruitment and development. [from abstract]

This report outlines an intervention that utilized supportive supervision in 86 facilities around Ethiopia that aimed to: enable healthcare workers to practice new skills in infection prevention and control (IPC) following formal trainings; coach health care facility staff to improve their performance in order to meet recommended IPC standards; improve the skills of supervisors for independent program monitoring; integrate IPC into the routine health care supervision system; and monitor the changes in program performance as a result of these activities. [adapted from author]

The objectives of the study reported in this article were to: estimate the technical and scale efficiency of national health systems (NHS) in utilizing human resources for health in African continent to produce various ultimate health outputs; identify the magnitudes of inefficiencies in the use of human resources for health in individual countries; identify the best performer NHS whose practice could be emulated by others; and highlight the implications for policy to health sector policy-makers. [from author]

This document is an evaluation of the implementation of a tool to assist in supervision, assessment and creation of action plans for quality improvement in facilities where TB is diagnosed and treated. [adapated from introduction]

This report examines working conditions of health workers in Nepal in relation to income and incentives, work supplies and equipment, issues on safety and security and the role of local authorities and the community. [from summary]

The report analyses the Ministry of Health and Population Human Resources for Health Management system in Nepal. It examines the main gaps in the human resources management system in the health sector and makes recommendations for viable mechanisms to strengthen the system. [from summary]

This tool collects data related to the current size of staff by position and the facility workload for each department. It then uses worker activity standards developed by Egyptian expert panels to calculate the precise workforce required to meet the workload of each facility. The tool’s output capabilities display the size of the gaps between current and required staff, examined across facilities, specialty areas, and types of worker, as well as among specialties within a facility. [from author]

This manual is a how-to guide to the workload indicators of staffing need (WISN) process and its implementation in Egypt. It provides a
step-by-step review of the WISN method and the calculations used in the analysis of the workforce to determine staffing needs. This guide is largely based on the Egyptian experience with the WHO methodology and how it was tailored to meet Egypt’s specific context and needs. [from introduction]

This case study explores the development and impact of a training program to improve health sector management and leadership so that the ministry of health could become more efficient and provide the quality of services that the Egyptian population needed and demanded. [adapted from author]

In this study the authors examine the relationship between health worker incomes and their satisfaction and motivation. [from abstract]

This study investigated the reasons for the poor performance of the district health executives reported by provincial health managers in the Midlands province of Zimbabwe. [adapted from abstract]

Continuing professional development (CPD) encompasses all of the activities that health workers undertake—both formal and informal—to maintain, update, develop, and enhance their professional skills, knowledge, and attitudes. This technical brief summarizes the literature concerning current best practices and innovative ideas in CPD. [from author]

The authors present the protocol of an evaluation of a district-level capacity-building intervention to identify the determinants of performance of health workers in managerial positions and to understand how changes (if any) are brought about. The scope for applying realist evaluation to study human resource management interventions in health is also discussed. [from abstract]

This resource is designed to assist health managers at all levels of an organization face challenges such as: how to create a shared vision of better health and a clear plan for achieving it; improving work climate; preparing for higher levels of responsibility; and leading change inside and outside the organization. [adapted from publisher]

This report provides an overview of an intercountry review and analysis of the present capacity, current status and functionality of HRH departments or units responsible for HRH actions in the ministries of health at the national level in the African Region of the World Health Organization. [adapted from introduction]

The objective of this study was to pilot an action learning group program, (an informal, practically based management training program which allow trainees to reflect on their own work environment) with managers in a rural public health setting and to explore participants’ experience of the program. [adapted from abstract]

The enormous fiscal pressures facing trauma centers may lead trauma centers to reduce nurse staffing and to make increased use of less expensive and less skilled personnel. The goal of this study was to examine whether nurse staffing levels and nursing skill mix are associated with trauma patient outcomes. [from abstract]

The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that strengthening health systems, through improved leadership and management skills of health teams, can contribute to an increase in health-service delivery outcomes. The study was conducted in six provinces in the Republic of Kenya. [from abstract]

Prepared as a background document for “The State of the World’s Midwifery 2011,” this paper focuses on three overarching aspects essential to midwifery workforce management: managing entry to the workforce, managing stay in the workforce, and managing exit from the workforce. [adapted from author]

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. [from publisher]

This paper investigates whether governments in developing countries can retain skilled health workers by raising public sector wages using sudden, policy-induced wage variation, in which the Government of Ghana restructured the pay scale for government health workers. [adapted from abstract]

This brief outlines the concepts of flexible working practices, which are being promoted by governments, employers and unions as an important element of efforts to recruit and retain skilled employees and to improve the deployment of available nursing skills. [adapted from author]

This study aimed to investigate the association between cancer surgical outcomes and physician/nurse staffing in relation to hospital volume. [from abstract]

This article describes a methodology developed to establish tuberculosis (TB) related work load in a given context and for a given patient load for use by TB program managers and health planners. The authors piloted this methodology in Tanzania in three districts; one rural, one urban and one semi-urban district as the countrycurrently faces a health workforce shortage of 65% in the public sector and 86% in the private sector, with unequal distribution between urban and rural areas. [adapted from author]

This survey tests the use of employee engagement concepts in United States Agency for International Development-assisted countries to measure and improve health worker performance, productivity, and retention. [adapted from author]

This report describes pioneering work where quality improvement methods are being applied to strengthen human resources management and performance at the facility, district, and regional management levels to improve maternal care in Niger’s Tahoua Region. [from summary]

Research reveals a close link between inappropriate nurse staffing levels and higher rates of unwanted outcomes for patients. This report highlights evidence-informed recommendations for improvements in patient outcomes through advancements in nurse staffing. [from summary]

These guidelines are Rwanda’s official guide to the management of a functional district health system and were designed as a daily guide for the duties of the district health team. It traces key roles and responsibilities of each team member. [adapted from foreward]

This paper demonstrates the use of the workload indicator of staffing needs methodology in determining staffing requirements for the nursing staff in a hospital setting. It shows how the results can be used to assess overstaffing and understaffing as well as determine the work pressure among the different categories of nurses thus providing a basis for effective nurse redistribution to exploit efficiency gains without compromising the quality of services. [from abstract]