With Field Support funds from the Mission in Kenya, LMS led a Health Sector Leadership and Management assessment from March through June 2008 aimed at guiding USAID and its partners on how best to strengthen leadership and management capacity in the health sector. Following the assessment phase and in response to some of its findings, USAID/Kenya has requested LMS to support public sector units of the health system, NGOs, FBOs, and other USAID partners by strengthening their leadership and management capabilities in two provinces at the provincial, district and facility levels. Staff from the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation and the Ministry of Medical Services are included in this program in order to ensure its sustainability.
EXPERIENCE IN COUNTRY
Kenya Health Sector Leadership and Management Assessment
The assessment was conducted from March through June 2008. Its aim was to document in-country health sector staff’s leadership and management capacity development needs; examine the degree to which the needs identified are being or have the potential to be met through current training programs offered in Kenya; and develop an MOH Strategy Paper to guide USAID and its partners on how best to strengthen leadership and management in the MOH and its affiliated implementing partners.
The assessment findings indicate a consistent pattern of management and leadership capacity gaps among health managers surveyed. While more than 90% of all health managers at the district level or above view quality management as important for effectiveness in their job, 61% said that they felt inadequately or not prepared at all for their current role. Of all health managers interviewed, 30% had not received pre- or in-service training, and among those who had, 58% had not received pre-service training. The Kenya Health Management and Leadership Strategy developed with LMS support offers a comprehensive and sustainable framework for responding to how Kenya prepares and continuously equips those who lead and manage its health delivery at all the levels of care.
