Poor management of health facilities and their resources is the major challenge facing the sector, Health Principal Secretary Dr Nicholas Muraguri has said.
Despite numerous commitments by the government to improve the delivery of this basic service to every Kenyan, many still receive sub-standard services or no services at all.
This causes an annual loss of over Sh5 billion on economic productive time spent by workers seeking better health care and treatment to mild diseases.
Averagely, over 40 and 18 percent of Kenyans are hindered by cost and distance respectively in access to health care.
Addressing health stakeholders at the Management Development Institute (MDI) 10th Anniversary held at Amref Kenya, Muraguri noted the need for public health systems to partner with Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) to refine the management of health resources. "Public private partnerships are the paradigm shift that will transform the country's approach and delivery systems for health care training," said Muraguri.
Adapted from speech at the 2015 MDI Opening Ceremony held November 15, 2015
The WHO definition of health indicates that for the first time, health is being defined as more than the absence of illness, but also as the presence of wellbeing. Health is now thought of as a holistic concept that encompasses the presence of physical, mental development, and social and financial capabilities.
By Michael Bzdak, Ph.D., Executive Director, Corporate Contributions, Johnson & Johnson
More than ten years ago, Johnson & Johnson partnered with UCLA and AMREF to create the Management Development Institute (MDI) to enhance the management skills of African healthcare leaders. Over the last decade, it has become even more evident that ineffective leadership and management of health systems and services is a barrier to scaling-up delivery of quality health services. Leadership, management and governance of health systems are fundamental components of both attaining the SDGs and achieving national health priorities in sub-Saharan Africa. This collaboration, which has grown to include the University of Cape Town and the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, underscores the importance of building the capacity of local health care professionals in key management and leadership competencies to implement local, regional and national health priorities.
Co-authored by MDI Regional Directors: Graduate Business School at the University of Cape Town, Amref Health Africa and Ghana Institute of Public Management & Administration (GIMPA)
The old adage “prevention is better than cure” has never before been more pertinent on the African continent. The determinants of better health outcomes require that healthcare managers take a holistic approach in tackling chronic and communicable diseases, high infant and maternal mortality and preventable deaths.
The multifaceted and complex challenges to healthcare systems in Africa are interwoven with socio-economic and political issues. With a growing population, there is an increasing demand for generating better outcomes with fewer resources, notwithstanding the financial support from the global community. Further, the economic disparities between rural and urban communities exacerbate healthcare challenges across the continent, including a shortage of skilled healthcare workers, insufficient physical infrastructure, and inefficiencies with the supply chain and the procurement of basic medicines and supplies.