Access and quality of rural healthcare: Ethiopian Millennium Rural Initiative.

OBJECTIVE: More than half the world's population lives in rural areas; however, we have limited evidence about how to strengthen rural healthcare services. We sought to determine the impact of a systems-based approach to improving rural care, the Ethiopian Millennium Rural Initiative, on key healthcare services indicators. DESIGN: We conducted an 18-month longitudinal mixed methods study of the 10 primary healthcare units (PHCUs) serving ~400,000 people, using monthly indicator tracking and focus groups. SETTING: Rural Ethiopia. PARTICIPANTS: Ten PHCUs and 140 focus group participants. INTERVENTION: The Ethiopian Millennium Rural Initiative. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Antenatal care coverage, skilled birth attendant rates, HIV testing in antenatal care, HIV testing in the health center or at health posts overall, outpatient volume at the health center. Qualitative data assessed community members' perceptions of healthcare services. RESULTS: We found significant increases (P-values of <0.05) in antenatal care coverage, skilled birth attendant rates, HIV testing in antenatal care and HIV testing at health center and health post levels. Outpatient visit rates also improved, but the change was not significant. Focus group data suggested that communities recognized substantial improvements but also voiced continued unmet needs. CONCLUSIONS: A systems-based approach to strengthening rural healthcare units is feasible, although complex, particularly in rural settings. The combined use of quantitative and qualitative data is needed to provide a comprehensive view of impact. Future research is needed to understand the determinants of variation in improvement across health centers and regions.

A brief questionnaire for assessing patient healthcare experiences in low-income settings.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop and to assess the validity and reliability of two brief questionnaires for assessing patient experiences with hospital and outpatient care in a low-income setting. DESIGN: Using literature review and data from focus groups (n = 14), we developed questionnaires to assess patient experiences with inpatient (I-PAHC) and with outpatient (O-PAHC) care in a low-income setting. Questionnaires were administered in person by trained interviewers. Construct validity was assessed with factor analysis; convergent validity was assessed by correlating summary scores for each scale with overall patient evaluations, and reliability was assessed with Cronbach's alpha coefficients. SETTING: Eight health facilities in Ethiopia. PARTICIPANTS: Patients >18 years old who had a hospital stay >1 day (n = 230), and patients who received outpatient care (n = 486). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Patient evaluations of health care experiences. RESULTS: The factor analysis revealed 12 items that loaded on five factors for the I-PAHC questionnaire. The O-PAHC showed similar results with 13 items that loaded on four factors. Summary scores for nearly all factors were significantly associated (P-value < 0.05) with the patient's overall evaluation score. The measure of reliability, Cronbach's alpha coefficients, showed good to excellent internal consistency for all scales. CONCLUSIONS: The I-PAHC on O-PAHC questionnaires can be useful in assessing patients' evaluations of care delivery in low-income settings. The questionnaires are brief and can be integrated into health systems strengthening efforts with the support of leadership at the health facility and the country levels.

Drug and Therapeutics Committee (DTC) evolvement and expanded scope in Ethiopia.

As a key partner of Ministry of Health (MOH) Ethiopia, The Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) had been implementing the Child Survival Project (CSP) since October 2015. Strengthening DTC was one of its focuses to improve overall supply chain management (SCM). The objective of this study are to review the evolution of DTCs in Ethiopia from their early years to current practice and identify the major driving and hindering factors for their functionality. A descriptive mixed study design was employed. The study made use of qualitative data supplemented with quantitative data, generated from both primary and secondary sources through key informant interviews and desk review methods. DTCs were introduced in Ethiopia in the early 1980s. The mandate of DTCs has been given to four different government organizations during that time. As a result, due to a lack of coordination among these organizations, its implementation was lagging. Recently, the government and its partners have given attention to DTCs. More than 5847 professionals underwent DTC training from 2016 onwards. DTC establishment in health facilities improved from 85% to 98% between 2015 and 2019 during baseline and end-line assessments carried out by CHAI/CSP. Similarly, DTC functionality in HFs improved from 20% to 63%. The CHAI/CSP regular supervision data analysis revealed that DTC establishment improved from 83% to 100% of HFs, while its functionality improved from 5% to 72% between 2016 and 2019, respectively. A chi-square test of independence examining the relationship between facility and pharmacy head training on DTCs and functionality of DTC in the same facility revealed a significant association between the two variables at p<0.0001. Conclusions: Providing consistent capacity building and availing strong monitoring and evaluation system improves functionality of DTCs. Moreover, national coordinating bodies for DTCs and similar structures at Regional Health Bureaus and woreda health offices should be established.

Educating leaders in hospital management: a new model in Sub-Saharan Africa.

QUALITY ISSUE: The vast majority of health system capacity-building efforts have focused on enhancing medical and public health skills; less attention has been directed at developing hospital managers despite their central role in improving the functioning and quality of health-care systems. Initial ASSESSMENT AND CHOICE OF INTERVENTION: Initial assessment of hospital management systems demonstrated weak functioning in several management areas. In response, we developed with the Ethiopian Ministry of Health (MoH) a novel Master of Hospital Administration (MHA) program, reflecting a collaborative effort of the MoH, the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative, Jimma University and Yale University. The MHA is a 2-year executive style educational program to develop a new cadre of hospital leaders, comprising 5% classroom learning and 85% executive practice. IMPLEMENTATION: The MHA has been implemented with 55 hospital leaders in the position of chief executive officer within the MoH, with courses taught in collaboration by faculty of the North and the South universities. EVALUATION AND LESSONS LEARNED: The program has enrolled two cohorts of hospital leaders and is working in more than half of the government hospitals in Ethiopia. Lessons learned include the need to: (i) balance education in applied, technical skills with more abstract thinking and problem solving, (ii) recognize the interplay between management education and policy reform, (iii) remain flexible as policy changes have direct impact on the project, (iv) be realistic about resource constraints in low-income settings, particularly information technology limitations, and (v) manage the transfer of knowledge for longer term sustainability.

Use of a national collaborative to improve hospital quality in a low-income setting.

BACKGROUND: Quality improvement collaboratives are a widely used mechanism to improve hospital performance in high-income settings, but we lack evidence about their effectiveness in low-income settings. METHODS: We conducted cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis of data from the Ethiopian Hospital Alliance for Quality, a national collaborative sponsored by Ethiopia's Federal Ministry of Health. We identified hospital strategies associated with more positive patient satisfaction using linear regression and assessed changes in patient experience over a 3-year period (2012-2014) using matched t-tests. RESULTS: A total of 68 hospitals (response rate 68/120, 56.7%) were included in cross-sectional analysis. Four practices were significantly associated with more positive patient satisfaction (p<0.05): posting a record of cleaning activity in toilets and in patient wards, distributing leaflets in the local language with each prescription, and sharing ideas about patient experience across the hospital. Among hospitals that had complete data for longitudinal analysis (44/68, 65%), we found a 10% improvement in a 10-point measure of patient satisfaction (7.7 vs 8.4, p<0.01) from the start to the end of the study period. CONCLUSIONS: Quality improvement collaboratives can be useful at scale in low-income settings in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly for hospitals that adopt strategies associated with patient satisfaction.

Khat and alcohol use and risky sex behaviour among in-school and out-of-school youth in Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Khat (an evergreen plant with amphetamine-like properties) and alcohol are widely consumed among the youth of Ethiopia. However, their relationship to risky sexual behaviour is not well described. This study was conducted to describe the magnitude of risky sexual behaviour (unprotected sex and early initiation of sexual activity) and its association with Khat and alcohol consumption in Ethiopian youths. METHODS: A probabilistic national sample of 20,434 in-school and out-of-school youths aged between 15 and 24 years of age was selected and interviewed regarding their sexual behavior and substance use. RESULTS: Over 20% of out-of-school youth had unprotected sex during the 12-month period prior to interview compared to 1.4% of in-school youth. Daily Khat intake was also associated with unprotected sex: adjusted OR (95% CI) = 2.26 (1.92, 2.67). There was a significant and linear association between alcohol intake and unprotected sex, with those using alcohol daily having a three fold increased odds compared to those not using it: adj. OR (95% CI) = 3.05 (2.38, 3.91). Use of substances other than Khat was not associated with unprotected sex, but was associated with initiation of sexual activity: adj. OR (95% CI) = 2.54 (1.84, 3.51). CONCLUSION: A substantial proportion of out-of-school youth engage in risky sex. The use of Khat and alcohol and other substances is significantly and independently associated with risky sexual behaviour among Ethiopian youths.

HIV prevalence in 72 000 urban and rural male army recruits, Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: The recent estimate of around 2 million HIV-infected people in Ethiopia derives from data that are sparse, especially in the rural areas where the majority (> 85%) of the population lives. We assessed HIV prevalence in almost 72 000 army recruits who resided in urban and rural areas prior to recruitment. METHODS: Rapid HIV tests, HIVSPOT and Determine, were conducted on blood samples drawn at enrolment from almost 10 000 urban recruits, in 1999, and 62 000 rural recruits, in 2000. Socio-demographic data from recruits were available. RESULTS: In urban recruits, overall HIV prevalence was 7.2%, ranging from 4.3 to 10.5% depending on region. In rural recruits, overall HIV prevalence was 3.8%, but the majority were farmers (57%) and students (18%) with an HIV prevalence of 2.7% and 2.6%, respectively. (Higher) level of education in rural recruits was associated with HIV infection. Rural recruits of the Muslim religion were less likely to be HIV infected than recruits of the Orthodox Christian religion (odds ratio: 0.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.65-0.84). Urban and rural residents of Amhara region were at higher risk of HIV infection. CONCLUSION: Prevalence in both rural and urban army recruits is below previous estimates. Geographic distribution of HIV is uneven. The impact of religion, education, and region on HIV prevalence suggests avenues for targeting HIV prevention efforts in Ethiopia.

HIV prevalence in 72,000 urban and rural male army recruits, Ethiopia, 1999-2000.

BACKGROUND: The recent estimate of around 2 million HIV-infected people in Ethiopia derives from data that are sparse, especially in the rural areas where the majority (> 85%) of the population lives. We assessed HIV prevalence in almost 72,000 army recruits who resided in urban and rural areas prior to recruitment. METHODS: Rapid HIV tests, HIVSPOT and Determine, were conducted on blood samples drawn at enrolment from almost 10,000 urban recruits, in 1999, and 62,000 rural recruits, in 2000. Socio-demographic data from recruits were available. RESULTS: In urban recruits, overall HIV prevalence was 7.2%, ranging from 4.3 to 10.5% depending on region. In rural recruits, overall HIV prevalence was 3.8%, but the majority were farmers (57%) and students (18%) with an HIV prevalence of 2.7% and 2.6%, respectively. (Higher) level of education in rural recruits was associated with HIV infection. Rural recruits of the Muslim religion were less likely to be HIV infected than recruits of the Orthodox Christian religion (odds ratio: 0.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.65-0.84). Urban and rural residents of Amhara region were at higher risk of HIV infection. CONCLUSION: Prevalence in both rural and urban army recruits is below previous estimates. Geographic distribution of HIV is uneven. The impact of religion, education, and region on HIV prevalence suggests avenues for targeting HIV prevention efforts in Ethiopia.

Evaluation of the Ethiopian Millennium Rural Initiative: impact on mortality and cost-effectiveness.

MAIN OBJECTIVE: Few studies have examined the long-term, impact of large-scale interventions to strengthen primary care services for women and children in rural, low-income settings. We evaluated the impact of the Ethiopian Millennium Rural Initiative (EMRI), an 18-month systems-based intervention to improve the performance of 30 primary health care units in rural areas of Ethiopia. METHODS: We assessed the impact of EMRI on maternal and child survival using The Lives Saved Tool (LiST), Demography (DemProj) and AIDS Impact Model (AIM) tools in Spectrum software, inputting monthly data on 6 indicators 1) antenatal coverage (ANC), 2) skilled birth attendance coverage (SBA), 3) post-natal coverage (PNC), 4) HIV testing during ANC, 5) measles vaccination coverage, and 6) pentavalent 3 vaccination coverages. We calculated a cost-benefit ratio of the EMRI program including lives saved during implementation and lives saved during implementation and 5 year follow-up. RESULTS: A total of 134 lives (all children) were estimated to have been saved due to the EMRI interventions during the 18-month intervention in 30 health centers and their catchment areas, with an estimated additional 852 lives (820 children and 2 adults) saved during the 5-year post-EMRI period. For the 18-month intervention period, EMRI cost $37,313 per life saved ($42,366 per life if evaluation costs are included). Calculated over the 18-month intervention plus 5 years post-intervention, EMRI cost $5,875 per life saved ($6,671 per life if evaluation costs are included). The cost effectiveness of EMRI improves substantially if the performance achieved during the 18 months of the EMRI intervention is sustained for 5 years. Scaling up EMRI to operate for 5 years across the 4 major regions of Ethiopia could save as many as 34,908 lives. SIGNIFICANCE: A systems-based approach to improving primary care in low-income settings can have transformational impact on lives saved and be cost-effective.

A systems approach to improving rural care in Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Multiple interventions have been launched to improve the quality, access, and utilization of primary health care in rural, low-income settings; however, the success of these interventions varies substantially, even within single studies where the measured impact of interventions differs across sites, centers, and regions. Accordingly, we sought to examine the variation in impact of a health systems strengthening intervention and understand factors that might explain the variation in impact across primary health care units. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We conducted a mixed methods positive deviance study of 20 Primary Health Care Units (PHCUs) in rural Ethiopia. Using longitudinal data from the Ethiopia Millennium Rural Initiative (EMRI), we identified PHCUs with consistently higher performance (n = 2), most improved performance (n = 3), or consistently lower performance (n = 2) in the provision of antenatal care, HIV testing in antenatal care, and skilled birth attendance rates. Using data from site visits and in-depth interviews (n = 51), we applied the constant comparative method of qualitative data analysis to identify key themes that distinguished PHCUs with different performance trajectories. Key themes that distinguished PHCUs were 1) managerial problem solving capacity, 2) relationship with the woreda (district) health office, and 3) community engagement. In higher performing PHCUs and those with the greatest improvement after the EMRI intervention, health center and health post staff were more able to solve day-to-day problems, staff had better relationships with the woreda health official, and PHCU communities' leadership, particularly religious leadership, were strongly engaged with the health improvement effort. Distance from the nearest city, quality of roads and transportation, and cultural norms did not differ substantially among PHCUs. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Effective health strengthening efforts may require intensive development of managerial problem solving skills, strong relationships with government offices that oversee front-line providers, and committed community leadership to succeed.

Hospital quality improvement in Ethiopia: a partnership-mentoring model.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Quality improvement efforts are increasingly common in the United States; however, their use in developing countries is limited. We sought to evaluate the impact of a large-scale intervention on several key management indicators through hospital quality improvement efforts. DESIGN: Pre-post-descriptive study of 14 hospitals in Ethiopia. SETTING: Six regions and two city administrations in Ethiopia. PARTICIPANTS: Hospital leaders and management mentors in participating hospitals. INTERVENTION: In collaboration with the Ministry of Health and the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative, we implemented a countrywide quality improvement initiative in which 24 mentors with hospital administration experience were placed for 1 year in Ethiopia to work side-by-side with hospital management teams. We also provided a professional development course to enhance quality improvement skills. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: s) Presence of 75 key management indicators; reported management skills of hospital leaders by the mentors. RESULTS: In pre-post analysis, we found improvement in 45 of the 75 (60%) key management indicators between August 2006 and May 2007. The changes reflected a total of 105 management indicators improved across the 14 hospitals, which equates to a per-hospital mean of 7.5 (standard deviation 5.9) improvements. Reported management skills of hospital leaders improved in several management domains, although their reported confidence in these skills remained largely unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that quality improvement efforts can be effective in improving hospital management in developing countries. Longer follow-up is required to assess the sustainability of the hospital improvements accomplished.

Hospital management in the context of health sector reform: a planning model in Ethiopia.

Through health sector reform in developing countries, Ministries of Health have sought to enhance health care through greater community governance and improved management effectiveness in their public hospitals. In this paper, we present a partnership-mentoring model for enhancing management capacity that has been piloted in Ethiopia and may be useful in other developing countries. The model included needs assessment and baseline evaluation using a hospital management indicator checklist, deployment of 24 Fellows (US and international hospital administrators) for 1 year to work as mentors with hospital management teams in 14 Ethiopian hospitals, continuing didactic and practical training in quality improvement methods for hospital management teams, and 24 management improvement projects to be completed during the year with plans for replication more broadly as appropriate. Surveys of Fellows and Ethiopian managers within the first quarter of onsite activity found high levels of trust in one another's abilities and intent to implement changes. The partnership-mentoring model promotes sustainability and may provide other countries with approaches for improving the quality of hospital care through improved hospital management.