KSV/017
Appui au secteur de la santé du Kosovo - Phase II

Dernières nouvelles

• Kosovo - Signing ceremony of the “Cooperation Agreement” between General Hospital of Gjilan and General Hospital of Murska Sobota

  Publié le 1 Mars 2018    Par Blerta Avdiu   

  Following the elaboration of the situation analysis, which produced results that provide recommendations to policy-makers on how to reinforce the management structures as well as to initiate implementation of hospital based quality management systems that will improve service provision, the process of drafting the Strategic Plan 2017-2021 of the General Hospital of Gjilan brought to the fore the need for the staff of the respective hospital to be part of a well-designed continuing professional development plan which will upgrade their knowledge in terms of management and clinical skills and will deliver benefits to the individuals, their profession and the overall public.     

  Taking into consideration that trainings are an important component of the project KSV/017, especially in enhancing the understanding of the healthcare reform and capacity building for the implementation of specific components of the reform, a delegation from Kosovo comprised of representatives of Ministry of Health, KHUCS, General Hospital of Gjilan and project KSV/017, held official meetings with representatives of General Hospital of Murska Sobota, in order to discuss the modalities between the hospitals and project KSV/017.

  Therefore, on July 12, 2017 the General Hospital of Gjilan signed the “Cooperation Agreement” with the General Hospital of Murska Sobota. The cooperation agreement, which will serve as a platform for sharing best practices between the hospitals, focuses on enabling partner hospitals to benefit and grow through exchanging knowledge and offer an incentive to healthcare providers from the Gjilan hospital to expand the horizons of their respective specialties.

  Upon signing of the cooperation agreement, Dr Agim Kryeziu, Acting General Director of GHGJ and Dr Bojan Korosec, General Director of GHMS, emphasized that the paramount importance of this cooperation agreement is the quality care for the patients, as well as the exchange of experiences between the two health institutions. In addition, Dr Afërdita Ademi – Osmani, the Chief Technical Adviser of project KSV/017, shared her experience with the working group of Gjilan hospital and stated that: the collaboration with the hospital’s staff has been an extremely sincere and professional cooperation with a commitment for fundamental change.

  Training programmes, which will be provided by representatives of the General Hospital of Murska Sobota, include clinical training for doctors and nurses in a supervised environment. In addition, there will be training modules on Quality Management System (QMS) and training on leadership and management.

  The "Cooperation Agreement" signed on July 12, 2017 is part of the activities of the Strategic Plan of the General Hospital Gjilan 2017-2021 and is supported by the project "Health Support Programme in Kosovo - Phase II - KSV/017" funded by the Government of the Republic of Kosovo and the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

  The training programmes started in December 2017. 

  

• Kosovo - National Health Information System : Hospital staff productivity up, operating costs down

  Publié le 8 Novembre 2017    Par Christine Bishop/Prarim Hoxha   

  The Government of Kosovo is moving towards a single, unified and integrated National Health Information System (HIS). This represents one of the largest and technologically most advanced information systems to be implemented by the Government of Kosovo.

  The initial phase covers the investment and meaningful use of Infrastructure and Communication Technology (ICT) in pilot health facilities. This infrastructure of the network provides a channel through which the country can roll out e-health solutions to improve the quality of health service by improving secure access to information and shared resources.

  The introduction of this state-of-the-art ICT infrastructure improves the county’s capability to collect, manage and use data as well as enhances the ability to implement a system of electronic medical records, e-referral, and e-learning. Improved health information systems through meaningful application of ICT will result in patients receiving better-quality of health services for care and treatment as well as improve maternal, new-born and child health services.

  So far, Kosovo has 63 health facilities networked and connected to the National Data Centre utilizing a centralized and integrated architecture for the Health Information System. Over 1,300 doctors and nurses have been trained in the use of the provided hardware and software.

  A doctor end user of the HIS made the following comment: “Better information and better access to this information gives health care providers and managers powerful tools. Automated patient medical records improve upon paper medical records through better organization, presentation and accessibility of data. Hospitals now using automated portions of patient medical records have reported both increased staff productivity and potential reductions in operating costs.”

  

• Kosovo – Actions for Improving Health Care Quality and Service Performance

  Publié le 11 Juin 2017    Par Eva DEGANELLO   

  In the beginning of 2016, the second phase of the “Health Support Programme in Kosovo” (KSV/017) was launched, confirming the commitment of the Luxembourg Government as one of the most important donors in the Health Sector.

  

  The most relevant achievements since the project commenced involve different areas of the healthcare system: International Accreditation of Family Medicine training programme, the development of the Integrated Health Information System (HIS), as well as the performance of the health services and the Ministry of Health itself (MoH).

  Today Kosovo has the first Centre for Development of Family Medicine that is internationally accredited for providing specialised training in Family Medicine. That demonstrates the commitment of the MoH to continually raise the standard in service provision in Primary Heath Care. An accredited residency programme promotes quality improvement and provides the means to share best practices with other residency programmes in Kosovo and the region.

  Furthermore, the HIS is being successfully implemented in 63 health facilities and over 1,300 doctors and nurses have been trained in using the provided hardware and software. This marks the first milestone for having a nationwide system. From the point of view of doctors and nurses, real-time health records enhance the quality of services they can provide to the public. In fact, one output of the HIS is a longitudinal electronic medical record which contains the entire medical history of a patient over the course of life. In general, better access to data represents an overall valuable result.

  

  Related to the improvement of service provision, a situation analysis at the Kosovo Hospital and University Clinical Service (KHUCS) is being implemented, aiming to support the MoH to assess the performance status of the whole KHUCS, with special emphasis on the general hospitals of Gjilan and Prizren. This will contribute to designing activities that will ensure a more patient-centred service provision.

  Finally, the project is providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Health in building capacities, by supporting different trainings and coaching activities, mainly related to the establishment of its strategic management capacities, foremost the process of setting a monitoring and evaluation system in the sector.

  

• A step towards the establishment of a Monitoring System for Kosovo Healthcare

  Publié le 2 Novembre 2016    Par Eva DEGANELLO   

  Since the previous phase of “Health Support Program in Kosovo – KSV014”, the Monitoring & Evaluation Division (M&E Division) of Ministry of Health has been supported on regular basis. Technical assistance offered to the Division includes trainings on instruments for capacity building. Therefore last month, as part of activities within the “Health Support Program – Phase II - KSV/017”, the M&E training was organized. The training targeted the core of the Healthcare Institutions in Kosovo and contributed to the establishment of a monitoring system in the sector.

  

  Setting up an M&E system for monitoring the implementation of the “Health Sector Strategy 2016-2020”is a challenge which demands the involvement of all Healthcare Institutions.

  Through implementation of a Monitoring & Evaluation system, the MoH will be able to better observe the progress, stagnation or failures in the healthcare system. A functional M&E system, will facilitate the role of the MoH as policymaker and regulator of the sector. With this in mind a 5 days training on M&E has been provided by KSV/017.

  

  Participants included staff and decision-makers from the different institutions, like directors and staff from different departments of the Ministry of Health and Kosovo Hospital and University Clinical Services (KHUCS), directors of hospitals and members of the health professional chambers.

  Furthermore representatives from Accessible Quality Healthcare (AQH), a project supported by the Swiss Development Cooperation, were encouraged to participate in the LuxDev training and apply the M&E system in their project. Employing the same system would strengthen the harmonisation and coordination between donors and counterpart.

  

  The training offered basic tools for Monitoring and Evaluation and focused on the Kosovo Health Sector Strategy 2016-2020. This document has been approved by the Ministry of Health and consists of objectives and results for the forthcoming years.

  How to measure changes occurred in Healthcare as a consequence of the strategy’s implementation? During the M&E training, participants learned how to define the structure needed to monitor the sector as well as to collaborate with the M&E Division, as a leading actor in this process. At present, staff and directors of different institutions are open to respond to the changes demanded by the implementation of an M&E system

• Kosovo - Promoting the Circular Economy through Private Waste Management Solutions

  Publié le 21 Mars 2016    Par Eva Marina Deganello   

  Despite the lack of a public recycling system in Kosovo, the presence of private companies committed to collecting separated waste creates opportunities to help protect the environment. 

  At present, the country is not yet equipped with a comprehensive and structured system for gathering and recycling waste. The public utility companies in charge of regular collection in municipalities transport the waste to large depots or landfills. 

  Nevertheless, some private companies operating in the country are dedicated to collecting materials such as plastic, paper and aluminium. They serve as centres for assembling waste, which is thereafter exported for processing and recycled.

  

  Since December 2015, the LuxDev project’s premises and the Regional Office have been provided with the requisite infrastructure to practice waste separation. Through an “Eco-friend” subscription, a service project developed by the NGO Green Art Centre, a regular connection with these private companies is upheld and services guaranteed.

  

  The aim of this activity is to reduce the environmental impacts and carbon footprint of LuxDev’s offices as well as raising awareness among LuxDev projects’ staff and its counterparts for recycling, environmental awareness and the circular economy. In this regard, the KSV/017 project has successfully implemented this system in its own offices and at the same time started discussions with the Ministry of Health (MoH), its main counterpart, to introduce a similar system for all its premises. The initial agreement has been reached with the Department of Administration and many enthusiasts have been identified among the MoH staff to help this initiative come to life .