Abstract
Quality of care at rural health centers in Rwanda is often limited by gaps in individual nurses' knowledge and skills, as well as systems-level issues, such as supply and human resource management. Typically, nurse training is largely didactic and supervision infrequent. Partners In Health and the Rwandan Ministry of Health (MOH) collaborated to implement the nurse-focused Mentoring and Enhanced Supervision at Health Centers (MESH) program. Rwandan nurse-mentors trained in quality improvement and mentoring techniques were integrated into the MOH's district supervisory team to provide ongoing, on-site individual mentorship to health center nurses and to drive systems-level quality improvement activities. The program targeted 21 health centers in two rural districts and supported implementation of MOH evidence-based protocols. Initial results demonstrate significant improvement in a number of quality-of-care indicators. Emphasis on individual provider and systems-level issues, integration within MOH systems, and continuous monitoring efforts were instrumental to these early successes.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 137-144 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Nursing Outlook |
| Volume | 61 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 2013 |
Funding
The Mentoring and Enhanced Supervision at Health Centers (MESH) program is funded in part by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Population Health Implementation and Training Partnership . Article Workforce and Collaboration: International Perspective
Keywords
- Africa South of the Sahara
- Continuing education
- Developing countries
- Mentors
- Nurses
- Primary health care
- Quality improvement
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Nursing
