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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Mohammad Alauddin, PhD and Salah Ahmed, MBBS. Pathfinder International, 9 Galen Street, Suite 217, Watertown, MA 02472, 617-924-7200, ghainsworth@pathfind.org
MIS, be it for services used, logistics consumed, or for training imparted to staff, provides data to managers at different points on the progress made toward program goals. Data is then monitored to track progress made between benchmarks and milestones and is used for making correctional decisions.
MIS is a much needed management tool, yet it was largely missing in managing quality improvement. Pathfinder has developed a Quality Management Information System (QMIS) and trained NGOs on its effective use. The NGOs are now using the system and find it a very effective and useful tool for monitoring the quality of services themselves.
The QMIS encompasses 139 clinics that offer an essential services package (ESP) of family planning and maternal and child health services in rural Bangladesh. QMIS has measures on eight quality components, and each have several sub-components within them. The QMIS cycle includes:
(a) Yearly administration of a three-part assessment of staff's technical knowledge, clinic records, and provider-client interaction,
(b) The graphing of composite scores for each component to observe trends in improvement,
(c) Review of scores by clinic staff to identify areas in need of improvement, causes of weak performance, and lessons learned.
(d) Quarterly follow-up on corrective interventions, identification of existing gaps, and the development of corrective action plans.
Data from the QMIS is then put on graphs for clinic staff to see for themselves how much progress they are making on different aspects of quality.
Learning Objectives: By the end of the session, participants will be able to
Keywords: Quality Improvement, International Reproductive Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.