Project Title

Project for Improving Continuum of Care for Mothers and Children through the Introduction of Combined MCH Record Book
Country

Ghana
Client

Ghana Health Service (GHS)
Period

April, 2018 to April, 2021

Position

Project Coordinator

SDGs

 SDGs
Outline

In Ghana, the improvement of the health status of mothers and children is considered a high priority. Despite great efforts made to address this issue, the neonatal, and under-five and maternal mortality ratios remain high at 29 per thousand live births, 60 per thousand live births (the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (2014 GDHS)), and 319 per 100,000 live births (the Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group (MMEIG)), respectively.

In response to these issues, the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) developed an Integrated Maternal and Child Health Record Book (MCH RB) with technical and financial support from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The main purpose is to fill the gaps of maternal and child health services with better coverage of continuum of care (CoC). Ghana has been utilizing two separate home-based record books for mothers and children over the last few decades. However, there are various challenges to promote CoC as there is a crack between delivery/post-natal care and childcare.

This project is expected to contribute to Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and improve maternal and child health by facilitating high- quality CoC for mothers and children throughout Ghana. It will also strengthen individualized health and nutrition counselling for mothers and children, and develop educational materials which will help health workers provide such services.

Project Title

Strengthening the Technical Capacity Development of the Local Government Service (Records Management and Fixed Assets Management) The 2nd Phase
Country

Ghana
Client

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Period

July 2021 - February 2022

Position

Advisor (Local Government Capacity Development) 

Type of Service

 Independent Expert Service

SDGs

 SDGs
Outline

The government system in Ghana has central government institutions and its local government, which structures regions and districts (Metropolitan, Municipal and District). The Office of the Head of the Local Government Service (OHLGS) under the Office of the President has once developed operational manuals both of records management and fixed assets, however, they are not implemented in local government institutions. Many institutions do not completely store important records and update fixed assets registers periodically. 

Strengthening the capacity of local government effecting the administrative decentralization is an urgent issue, especially the development of the implementation model of records management and fixed assets management including operational manual revision. The project develops a unified implementation model of records management and fixed assets management countrywide and supports the capacity building of local government officers in a way that the manual is revised and disseminated.

Project Title

Strengthening the Technical Capacity Development of the Local Government Service (Records Management and Fixed Assets Management) The 3rd Phase
Country

Ghana
Client

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Period

May 2022 - October 2023 

Position

Advisor (Local Government Capacity Development) 

Type of Service

 Independent Expert Service

SDGs

 SDGs
Outline

The government system in Ghana has central government institutions and its local government, which structures regions and districts (Metropolitan, Municipal and District). The Office of the Head of the Local Government Service (OHLGS) under the Office of the President has once developed operational manuals both of records management and fixed assets, however, they are not implemented in local government institutions. Many institutions do not completely store important records and update fixed assets registers periodically.
The 3rd phase assists deploying the unified implementation model of records management and of fixed assets management to all regions and model districts countrywide in collaboration with OHLGS, which model has completed developing in the 1st and the 2nd phase. The model consists of activities including a management workshop for district chief, a training of trainers for extension trainers in region and a training for model district.

Project Title

Quality of Care for Maternal and Newborn Health with Focus on 5S-KAIZEN-TQM Country
Country

Ghana
Client

Ghana Ministry of Health (GMOH), Ghana Health Service (GHS) 
Period

June, 2022 to January,2024 

Position

Project expert on Maternal and Child Health 

Type of Service

 Technical Cooperation

SDGs
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Outline  The government of Ghana has been striving to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC)*. So far, there are some improvements in the rate of delivery by the skilled childbirth attendants, attendance of antenatal and postnatal clinics, immunization rate of children and so forth. Consequently, the mortality rate of mothers and children decreased by half from 1990. Despite these positive results, under-five and maternal mortality ratios remain still high at 52 per thousand live births, 310 per 100,000 live births (the 2017 Ghana Maternal Health Survey) respectively. In 2016 National Healthcare Quality Strategy (NHQS) 2017-2021 was formulated. To implement this strategy, Quality Management Department was established in GMOH in 2018, and the guideline for National Healthcare Quality Strategy was launched by Ghana Health Service (GHS) in 2019. It is acknowledged that there are needs of more training and financial support for full-scale implementation of this guideline. Therefore, the Government of Ghana requested JICA for a project, namely Quality of Care for Maternal and Newborn Health with Focus on 5S-KAIZEN-TQM. It is expected to improve the quality of MCH service at health facilities through the project. This project has been implemented in 4 regions such as Ashanti, Northern, Greater Accra and Volta. The activities will be 1) Ghana Quality of Care Standards with focus on maternal, newborn and child health are practiced, 2) Quality improvement activities at national, regional, district, sub-district and community levels of the health system are practiced with the implementation of 5S-KAIZEN-TQM, 3) Capacity of quality improvement of continuum of care for maternal and newborn is strengthened in Ashanti Region. 4) Referral and counter referral of mothers and newborns are practiced and strengthened by system improvement at regional to CHPS level. Ultimately this project is expected to contribute to improvement of care of mothers and newborns in targeted regions.

*Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is where “everyone can receive adequate quality health care services, when needed, at a manageable cost.”

Project Title

Quality of Care for Maternal and Newborn Health with Focus on 5S-KAIZEN-TQM Country( second phase)
Country

Ghana
Client

Ghana Ministry of Health (GMOH), Ghana Health Service (GHS) 
Period

March, 2024 to July,2027

Position

Project expert on Maternal and Child Health 

Type of Service

 Technical Cooperation

SDGs
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Outline The Project on the Quality of Care for Maternal and Newborn Health with Focus on 5S-KAIZEN-TQM is expected to improve the quality of MCH service at health facilities as the second phaseThe project has will be implemented in 4 regions such as Ashanti, Northern, Greater Accra and Volta. The outputs will consist of 1) Ghana Quality of Care Standards with focus on maternal, newborn and child health are practiced, 2) Quality improvement activities at national, regional, district, sub-district and community levels of the health system are practiced with the implementation of 5S-KAIZEN-TQM, 3) Capacity of quality improvement of continuum of care for maternal and newborn is strengthened in Ashanti Region. 4) Referral and counter referral of mothers and newborns are practiced and strengthened by system improvement from CHPS to Regional level. Ultimately this project is expected to contribute to improvement of care for mothers and newborns in targeted regions. 
The PSD staff will be responsible for mainly Output 3.  Thus, PSD staff will implement the technical cooperation on activities to strengthen the capacity of health personnel on the quality of continuum of care for pregnant women and newborns using maternal and child health record book.  Concretely, the training on nutrition counselling and respectful care, and subsequent monitoring &supervision will be under its responsibility.


*Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is where “everyone can receive adequate quality health care services, when needed, at a manageable cost.”