Projekt Unaprjeđenja Hitne Medicinske Pomoći I Investicijskog Planiranja U Zdravstvu

Development of Emergency Medical Services and Investment Planning Project

Terms of Reference (TOR)

Consultant Services: Building the Capacity of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MoHSW) in Accessing EU Funds

Background The Republic of Croatia received Loan no. 7598 HR from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (The World Bank) for the support of Development of Emergency Medical Services and Investment Planning Projects (DEMSIPP) objectives, focused on EMS reform and on capacity building at MoHSW for developing and managing strategic plans, some of which could be financed with EU Funds depending on the results of the accession process. The Project objective is to improve the efficiency and outcomes of the emergency medical services system and to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to develop and implement strategic projects. The project includes two components: (i) Development of Emergency Medical Services and (ii) Institutional Support to MoHSW for Strategic Planning. Component 1: Development of Emergency Medical Services This component would finance investments to restructure the emergency medical services in order to improve the geographical distribution of resources, responsiveness, efficiency, and quality of services. It includes four sub-components, each addressing a specific area of Emergency Service provision and monitoring. Namely, these are: (i) establishment of a Croatian Institute for Emergency Medical Services, which will guide EMS policy, set and monitor national guidelines and standards for EMS services in Croatia; (ii) reorganization of pre-hospital EMS, which will support the implementation of the national guidelines at the county level, upgrade pre-hospital EMS human, vehicle and equipment resources, and establish and integrate the EMS dispatch units with the national emergency system; (iii) integration of in- hospital EMS, which will support the creation of integrated EMS departments in selected hospitals and upgrade the capacity of selected remote health centers to provide emergency services; and (iv) initiation of an emergency-related telemedicine service delivery network to improve EMS delivery on selected islands and at other remote sites through the use of telemedicine technologies. Component 2: Institutional Support to MoHSW for Strategic Planning The objective of this component is twofold: (i) to complement supply side reforms under component 1 by developing restructuring plans for health care facilities and human resources; and (ii) to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to develop and manage projects, some of which could be financed through EU pre-accession and accession funds. The rationale for this component stems from two observations: (i) there are significant investments to be done to improve the efficiency of the health sector that require adequate planning and managerial capacity at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare; and (ii) the experience in new EU member states shows that preparation of proposals and plans to make use of EU structural funds should begin as early as possible. This component includes three sub- components: (i) developing priority programs as a basis for planning the key elements of a health investment strategy. These elements would be used for advocating for the EU or other sources of funds to invest in health in such a way as to achieve a more efficient and effective health system. The elements to be supported by the Project would be focused on but not limited to the development of a health facilities masterplan, a health human resources strategy, and specific projects to harness information communication technology (ICT) to better manage the health system and deliver health services; (ii) capacity building for accessing EU funds, which would support the development of the necessary human resources and institutional capacity for accessing EU funds; (iii) project management support for successful execution of the DEMSIPP.

Objectives of the Consultancy The objective of these consulting services is to help the staff of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance, the Croatian Institute for Public Health and other stakeholders designated by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to strengthen capacity for the preparation of development projects and obtaining grant funds from the EU for efficient use of pre-accession funds and European Union structural funds.

Scope of work The consultancy comprises a Consulting Firm that is responsible for assisting the MoHSW in capacity building for accessing EU funds. The Consulting Firm’s team should comprise an international consultant and a local consultant. International consultant takes the lead, and works closely with the local consultant. The tasks of the Consulting Firm include: (i) assessment of needs; (ii) development of training/education plan; (iii) development of manuals and guidelines; (iv) implementation of training/education; (v) training of trainers; (vi) support of implementation/application of acquired skills and knowledge (support in preparation of project proposals)

2 Activities within these tasks that the consultant team shall carry out are listed in the table bellow:

Assignments Tasks Assessment of needs Needs assessment will include a review of options for the application of project proposals and analysis of the proposals that have already been made by the MoHSW. Identification of priority area and assessment of needs for training – focused on ability of good priority analysis, using various methods and diagnostic tools. The consultants shall identify existing level of knowledge and experience in the MoHSW, as well as the level of awareness of the EU programs available for potential beneficiaries from Croatia. The consultants shall consider the specific questions of MoHSW staff on health care and identify priority areas, needs and target groups for education. Development of Based on the assessment of needs, the consultants shall develop a training/education plan detailed plan and curriculum of training/education including at minimum the following:  Overview of rules and regulations of EU relevant for public sector operations;  Overview of EU programs available for the beneficiaries in Croatia; and overview of programs which will be available when Croatia will become the part of EU  Identification of projects that can be financed from the EU and relevant sources of funds;  Possibilities of application on EU competitions; and also possibilities which will be available when Croatia will become the part of EU  Searching for project partners and opportunities for inclusion in a partners’ network;  Development of project proposals (for funds which are currently available and those which will be available when Croatia will become part of the EU) including:  Identification and development of project concepts;  Development of particular development projects;  Following competitions;  Assessment of responsiveness of the project to the objectives and priorities of the competition;  Assessment of responsiveness of the MoHSW for the conditions of the competition;  Application of project proposals using the standard forms;

3  Exposition of projects;  Establishing connections with key partners. Development of manuals Based on the training/education plan the consultants shall prepare and guidelines the training manual including presentations, examples of projects in the health care area, case studies and practical assignments for participants that will be used at the workshops. The manuals will be prepared in English language and will include training forms adjusted to the target groups identified during the needs assessment of education. The consultants shall develop appropriate guidelines to provide sustainability and application of acquired knowledge and skills. Implementation of The team of consultants shall implement the training/education training/education program through 5 interactive workshops in Zagreb. There will be 20 participants in each workshop and they will be divided into working groups according to type of projects working on. Participants of workshops will be selected by Contractor among the professional staff in Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Croatian Institute for Health Insurance, Croatian Institute for Public Health and other stakeholders. The workshops will include practical work, case studies and practical exercises in application of acquired knowledge. The consultant team will carry out education in the format of education of educators, so that all participants could transmit the acquired knowledge. The training shall enable the beneficiaries to:  Identify project that can be co-financed by EU;  Development of project concepts;  Autonomous development of proposals for project financed by the EU funds;

Working language Workshop working language will be English. Support of The consultants shall provide support in development of projects implementation/application that can be co-financed by EU in order to achieve level of (support of project competencies of staff needed for autonomous development of proposals) project proposals using the method of “learning by doing”. The support in development of project shall include:  Consultations;  Connecting with key partners;

As a result of supporting project proposals it is expected that project proposals will be well prepared and ready for submission of tenders for financing.

4 Time frame and inputs required Consulting services will be done in a period of 11 months, with the start scheduled in January of 2010. It is expected that the international and local consultant will require a total of 60 working days (estimated local consultant 29 working days, and foreign consultant 31 working days).

It is envisioned that capacity building should be held through 5 workshops (initial workshop lasting three days, and the other four - five days duration) in the time dynamics of every other month so that participants could have enough time in the period between workshops to perform tasks as directed by the consultant team. The time schedule of the workshops, however, is not fixed and is given for reference. Consulting firms are welcome to propose alternative time schedules. The time frame of the consultancy and the total number of working days are definite.

Deliverables and reports The Consulting Firms shall deliver the following deliverables/reports: 1. Inception report that includes assessment of needs and training/education plan, not later than 30 days after contract signature. 2. Training manual and guidelines in accordance with the TOR, not later than 30 days after the acceptance of the inception report. 3. Report on completed training including the training materials used at the workshops, evaluation of each workshop, not later than 7 days after workshop is completed. 4. Final report including review of support provided in development of projects that can be financed from EU and evaluation of capacity building of the MoHSW staff in autonomous preparation of project proposals, not later than 11 months after contract signature. All deliverables and reports shall be prepared in English and Croatian language and delivered in two copies and in an opened electronic form (MS Word, Excel, and Power Point).

Institutional arrangements In implementing of Project task the Consulting Firm will work under supervision and cooperate closely with representatives of the MoHSW. The Consulting Firm will work under supervision of the head of the working group for the second component of the Project and the Project manager.

Qualifications required – Consulting Firm

5 The Consulting Firm should have appropriate and relevant experience in providing capacity building services to governments for accessing EU funds. Experience in technical assistance with successful applications to EU structural funds for the health care sector is an obligation. Experience from the Region is a merit.

Qualifications required – consulting team leader: international consultant The international consultant should have an appropriate academic background and have extensive experience of working on similar assignments in international environment. The consultant should have practical experience in the development of successful applications to EU structural funds for the health care sector, as well as experience in development and implementation of training/education programs. Experience from the region is a merit. English language skills are essential.

Qualifications required – consulting team member: local consultant The local consultant should have an appropriate academic background and have extensive experience of working on similar assignments. Consultant should have experience in development of project proposals in financing and experience in development and implementation of education program. Experience in the region is an advantage. English language skills are essential.

Terms and conditions which are ensured by the Contracting Authority MoHSW guarantees its commitment to use EU funds, provide sufficient number of staff for education and coordination of participants at the workshops. Croatian Institute for Health Insurance shall provide appropriate venues and equipment needed for workshops. All participant related expenses (local travel, accommodation, printing of materials, etc.) will be born by the MoHSW.