Capacity building for human resources for logistics

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Capacity building for human resources for
logistics

• Jhilmil Bahl
• TechNet 2008

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Outline

• Background
• Current status in-service and pre-service
  trainings
• Results of Training Landscape Analysis
• Proposed next steps

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Background 1 Changing Environment

• Logistics and cold chain systems are the backbone
  of health services
• - These systems are now being challenged
• New vaccines and drugs in the pipeline
• (e.g. at least 6 new vaccines in next 10 years)
• Integration of other public health interventions
  with immunization (in the context of GIVS
  implementation)
• To cope with the resulting increase in
  complexity, professional logisticians (those who
  received pre-service training in logistics) are
  required.

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Integrated training vaccine management along
with other programme issues
Question How much detail of programme should
logistics specialist have? How much details of
vaccine mgt./logistics should programme staff
have?
National level
EPI manager
State level Immunization officer
District level Immunization officer
Peripheral level Health workers
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Currently available courses
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Currently active training providers

• WHO, UNICEF
• PATH, ImmunizationBasics, CDC
• AMP, NESI, Merck foundation
• In-country MoH, training institutes, academia

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Pre-service training on logistics

• 2005 Bioforce study in 5 African countries
• Need to professionalize the health logistician
  staff category
• Proposed types of training integrated
  pre-service and in-service training of health
  logistician
• 2006 TFI (AFRO) recommendation related to health
  logistics officers positions and training

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Competency areas of health Logistician

• 1 - Logistics planning coordination
• 2 - Logistics operations management
• 3 - Maintenance and Sub-contracting
• 4 - Administrative financial management for
  logistics
• 5- Housing, Water Sanitation logistics
• 6 - Emergency epidemics logistics
• 7- Inter-sectoral collaboration community
  participation.

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Job description

• The health logistics officer's job description
  will be based on 7 professional competencies
• Coordinate and plan logistics operations in
  support of health interventions.
• Make best use of human resources in the logistics
  chain.
• Plan and manage the health products supply chain
  forecast requirements, manage stocks, organize
  distribution, and monitor flows.
• Plan, institute and supervise a system for
  acquiring, installing, operating and maintaining
  technical equipment.
• Supervise administrative and financial operations
  within relevant areas of responsibility.
• Manage and maintain facilities and
  infrastructures (energy, water, environment,
  premises).
• Provide prompt and effective logistics support in
  emergencies and humanitarian operations.
• WHO/AFRO study on health logistics

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Integration of health logistician profile
within the health pyramid
Level
Staff/ Level
Qualification/ Level
Engineer
Central Level
Senior Staff
Engineer/ High level technician
Provincial/ Regional Level
Provincial/regional staff
High Level Technicina
District Level
District staff
Basic level technician
Health Facility level
Health facility staff
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Regional Consensus on pre-service training on
health logistics(HL)

• Workshop at IRSP, Ouidah, Benin, 2-6 June 2008
• Participants National and IST logisticians,
• Partners(UNICEF, Bioforce, AMP, IRSP)
• Other health programmes
• Consensus made on
• Definition of health logistics
• Exit profile for health logistician
• Competency areas of health logistician
• Integration of health logistician profile within
  the health pyramid
• Structure for pre service training for health
  logistician

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Pre service Next steps

• Consensus on pre-and in-service training
  CURRICULA on logistics for Health
• Mobilize resources as needed
• Pilot pre-and in service training on logistics
  for health at inter-country and in-country
  levels 
• Expand this training to all interested countries
• Establish partnerships and networks at all levels
• Advocacy for country ownership
• Official adoption of LH category thru RC

What is happening in other regions?
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Training Landscape analysis

• Objectives
• review logistics training materials and
  assessments of those materials and
• help list core skills that need to be addressed
  by trainings in order to improve immunization
  logistics and
• identify effective methods of training to meet
  future needs.
• Methods used
• Reviewing activities within the WHO other global,
  public sector or nationally-based
• Interviewing WHO staff and other partners
• Review post-training evaluations and assessments
  to identify effective and ineffective training
  methodologies

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Training Landscape analysis Main findings

• Several types of management, assessment and
  software tools and resources are available
• The training methodologies vary greatly, ranging
  from logistics modules within larger training
  courses, to logistics-specific training courses
  to stand-alone policy guides with no true
  training component (i.e. self-learning on best
  practices or improved policies), to
  internet-based distance learning.
• Relatively few of tools and resource materials
  are accompanied by a well organized and
  structured set of training materials
• Of the materials accompanied by formal training
  programmes, many have only been implemented a
  very few times.
• National or regional training centres seem to
  have very few standardized reviews of the quality
  of their training
• Almost no studies were found that look 2 to 5
  years post-training, to see if the desired
  outcomes of training were achieved

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What is lacking

• An overall framework of agreed upon
  performance-based and measurable competencies for
  logistics.
• Logistics specialists curriculum

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What seems to work

• Training as a continuum
• Pre-training period
• participant selection, matching training methods
  to training needs
• Intra-training period
• covers the actual training session(s), including
  pre and post tests, field visits and post-course
  study in the work environment
• Post-training period
• covers from the end of formal teaching through
  the end of a persons professional involvement

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Key recommendations

• Examine adoption of competency-based training to
  achieve sustainable performance improvements.
• Further research on how to combine new and
  existing instructional approaches and systems
• Develop pilot options that can be feasibly and
  effectively scaled up for national roll-out and
  adoption
• Inject motivation and follow-up support into all
  aspects of instructional design
• Embed sustainability by linking pre- and
  in-service training to identified competencies,
  and aligning the performance appraisal and
  incentive systems accordingly.
• Take advantage of ISS, HSS and other health
  sector development efforts

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Activities for next year

• Specialist courses- update GTN VM curriculum
• E-learning materials for some software tools
• Work with training institutes in delivering
  logistics and MLM courses at country level.
• Integrate vaccine mgt. components in all
  trainings for new vaccines introduction

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The essence of logistics
Thank you for attention