The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity Building Project in The
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The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Lessons learned in leadership and management i The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Julius Balinda, Hans Beks, Isaac Ezati, James Ikabat, Eric Kakoole, Resty Kamya, Florence Kebirungi, Abassi Mansour, Ronald Miria Ocaatre, Richard Obeti, Bernard Odu, David Okia, Charles Olaro, Jimmy Opigo, Jakor Oryema, Damian Rutazaana, Martin Ssendyona Anke van der Kwaak and Marjolein Dieleman (eds) BTC Uganda and the Ministry of Health Uganda November 2015 Kampala, Uganda i The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Colofon: Belgian Technical Cooperation BTC – Uganda Lower Kololo Terrace Plot 1B P.O. Box 40131 Kampala, Uganda Ministry of Health Lourdel Road, Nakasero, Uganda Ministry of Health Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) P. O. Box 95001 1090 HA Amsterdam The Netherlands This is an open access publication distributed under theterms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. © 2015 BTC Uganda Edited by Jon Stacey, The Write Effect, Oxford, UK Photos: BTC Uganda Cover photo: BTC Uganda ii iii The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Contents Acknowledgements Dr Asuman Lukwago ................................. vi Foreword Dr Isaac Alidria-Ezati ............................................... vii Introduction Hans Beks and Isaac Alidria-Ezati ..........................1 Part 1: Strengthening decentralized health systems .......... 11 1. A compelling case for a regional health care approach in Uganda Damian Rutazaana, Charles Olaro, Ronald Miria Ocaatre, Bernard Odu, Martin Ssendyona, Jimmy Opigo, David Okia and Eric Kakoole ........................ 12 2. Execution Agreements: a good governance tool for implementation of the Institutional Capacity-Building project in the Rwenzori and West Nile regions of Uganda ..... 24 Richard Obeti, Jimmy Opigo, Damian Rutazaana, Ronald Miria Ocaatre, David Okia, Charles Olaro and Jakor Oryema .. 24 Part 2: Strengthening capacity for sustainability ................. 39 3. The revitalization and transformation of a national training institute: the case of the Health Management Development Centre in Mbale, Uganda ............................... 40 Eric Kakoole and James Ikabat ......................................... 40 4. Governance, leadership and management training for health systems strengthening in Uganda: the Institutional Capacity-Building project experience ................ 48 Julius Balinda, Abassi Mansour, Jimmy Opigo, Richard Obeti and Damian Rutazaana ............................................ 48 5. Blended online learning as an alternative for delivering leadership and management skills for health care workers in Uganda ......................................................... 60 James Ikabat, Florence Kebirungi, Resty Kamya and Jimmy Opigo ........................................................... 60 ii iii The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Part 3: Making services more responsive to clients’ needs . 71 6. Strengthening the ambulance referral system through community participation in the West Nile region .................. 72 Jimmy Opigo, Julius Balinda and Abassi Mansour ................. 72 7. Patient-centred care in Arua and Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospitals ............................................................ 84 David Okia, Charles Olaro, Bernard Odu and Damian Rutazaana ...................................................................... 84 Annex A:Biographical information ............................................. 90 Annex B:Uganda country profile ............................................... 99 Annex C:ICB project profile .................................................... 101 iv v The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Abbreviations and acronyms AMREF African Medical and Research Foundation BTC Belgian Technical Cooperation DHO District Health Officer DLG District Local Government EA Execution Agreement GLM Governance, leadership and management HMDC Health Manpower Development Centre HMIS Health Management Information System HSSIP Health Sector Strategic and Investment Plan (2010/11–2014/15) ICB Institutional Capacity-Building IT Information technology MDG Millennium Development Goal MOH Ministry of Health MTR Mid-Term Review NGO Non-governmental organization PCC Patient-centred care PNFP Private not-for-profit RHF Regional Health Forum RPMT Regional Performance Monitoring Team RRH Regional Referral Hospital SDG Sustainable Development Goal iv v The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Acknowledgements In 2009, the Government of Uganda and the Kingdom of Belgium agreed on the formulation of the ‘Institutional Capacity Building project in Planning, Leadership and Management’ to be implemented by the Ministry of Health (MOH) in Uganda. Leadership and management weaknesses were identified as important bottlenecks hindering improvement of health sector performance. The project was intended to assist the MOH in closing the leadership and management gap in the sector and to initiate improved practices in District Local Government health services in the Rwenzori and West Nile regions. During its time within the MOH, the project has undergone several adaptations to respond to the changing needs of the sector in general and the Ministry in particular. The flexibility experienced under the project has been a much-appreciated strength. We have seen extensive technical and financial support to the Directorate of Planning and Development in the Ministry, with the development of new policies and strategic papers. Health services in the two project regions received much support through procurements of medical equipment and transport means, such as ambulances, utility vehicles and motorcycles. Direct funding to District Health Offices through Execution Agreements provided support in a performance-based modality. The support to the revitalization of the Health Manpower Development Centre under the project and the introduction of an e-learning system brought important changes to the opportunities for Continuous Professional Development for our health workforce. On behalf of the MOH, I express our gratitude to the Belgian government for funding and supporting the project. We are very pleased with the continued support and especially the continuation of ‘Institutional Capacity Building’ with a second phase of the project. My appreciation goes to the Project Steering Committee, the project management team, our staff members at the MOH and Regional Referral Hospitals and the stakeholders in the 15 supported District Local Governments, for their active participation and genuine interest in the success of the project. Dr. Asuman Lukwago, Permanent Secretary – Ministry of Health ICB Project Director vi vii The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda The Life and Times of the Institutional Capacity-Building Project in the Health Sector in Uganda Foreword Uganda and Belgium have been partners for many years. Over the past 5–10 years the focus of collaboration has been mostly on the health and education sectors. As one of the bilateral budget support donors, the Belgian government was concerned about the falling trend in health indicators over the period 2006–2009, which was attributed to challenges in sector leadership and management. The Health Development Partners were supportive towards investing in the health sector, but the identified leadership and management gap needed to be addressed. Under the Uganda– Belgium cooperation programme, an intervention on ‘Institutional Capacity Building in Planning Leadership and Management’ (ICB) was formulated and introduced in the Ministry of Health (MOH) in 2010. The initial period of the project was difficult, as the Ministry was undergoing changes in its leadership. Also the concept of ‘Institutional Capacity Building’ as an institutional development approach was not yet well understood. From 2011 onwards, the ICB project has been successfully implemented in the health sector at various levels. Support to the MOH headquarters targeted planning and quality assurance interventions, as well as policy development. The revitalization and transformation of the Health Manpower Development Centre, as the only health training institute under the MOH, was added to the original project objectives. Covering two Regional Referral Hospitals and their surrounding districts provided the project with the opportunity to pilot a regional, rather than a district approach towards decentralized health services. At the regional level the MOH and the District Local Governments