Andrea Poling is a former public health and project management specialist with experience designing and implementing public health programs focusing on maternal and child health, family planning, and health systems strengthening.
Doris Youngs has more than 20 years of experience managing field‐based implementation and global operations of USAID health programs, including seven years in the field supporting USAID‐funded multi‐country and bilateral programs. She served as the vice president for country programs for the Global Health Supply Chain – Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) project. As the…
When the 1994 genocide in Rwanda ravaged health facilities and left a decimated workforce in its wake, the population’s health suffered greatly. Since then, however, the country has significantly improved its health system. The USAID Rwanda Family Health Project (FHP) worked with local communities to increase access to and the quality of community-based family health…
Changing the way that malaria is diagnosed could help to revolutionize health care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). To this end, the Ivanhoe Fionet Partnership introduced new technology into the DRC to improve the quality of malaria data and diagnoses. The project brought Chemonics together with Fio Corporation, a health care technology…
In many low- and middle-income countries, health systems face shortages of qualified health workers, and decision-makers lack the data and tools needed to optimize existing resources.
During the internship year of my medical training, Peru was affected by a severe El Niño. At that time, millions of people living in the poor peri-urban belt of Lima lacked access to clean water and sanitation services. These factors were a recipe for a massive outbreak of diarrheal diseases in children. The pediatric services…
In July, thousands of scientists, advocates, policymakers, and international development professionals are gathering in Durban, South Africa, to reflect on the progress made so far in the fight against HIV/AIDS and to discuss the most strategic and inclusive initiatives for the future. The International AIDS Conference, which runs from July 18-22, is the second to take…
Global health leaders have consistently identified motivation and retention of health workers as hurdles to achieving the vision of universal health coverage. In its strategic plan, the Jordan Ministry of Health suggests that 2.7 percent of doctors and 6.8 percent of nurses leave the country every year. What issues do you believe have the most…
“No one is going home soon,” stated the moderator at a recent Society for International Development-Washington panel discussion about the global refugee crisis. This simple observation drives home the reality that governments, aid organizations, and refugees themselves have confronted around the world for nearly five years. It is a reality that has more recently entered mainstream…
The 69th World Health Assembly presents a significant milestone for those of us who work in human resources for health (HRH): HRH has finally been recognized as a foundational principle in reaching world health goals. More so now than at any other point in history, the public health community is devoting significant attention and effort…
From 2008 to 2013, the project worked to achieve this goal through: 1) improving governance and management practices in the health sector, 2) improving the quality of essential clinical and community-based health services, and 3) increasing the availability of essential commodities to achieve health and humanitarian assistance goals. In 2014, the project continued exclusively on…