A Checklist for Implementing Rural Pathways to Train, Develop and Support Health Workers in Low and Middle-Income Countries

Frontiers in Medicine

James Rourke¹  Paul Worley²  Viviana Martinez-Bianchi³  Bruce Chater⁴  Belinda O'Sullivan⁵  Sarah Strasser⁵  Amie Bingham⁵  Raman Kumar⁶  Henry Lawson⁷  John Wynn-Jones⁸  Nagwa Nashat Hegazy⁹  Sankha Randenikumara^1,10  Ian Couper^1,11 

[1] 0Center for Rural Health Studies, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada;1College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia;Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Duke University, Durham, NC, United States;Faculty of Medicine, Rural Clinical School, University of Queensland, Theodore, QLD, Australia;Faculty of Medicine, Rural Clinical School, University of Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, Australia;Family Medicine Practitioner, DOC24 Family Practice Clinic, Ghaziabad, India;Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons, Accra, Ghana;Keele Medical School, Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom;Medical Education and Human Resources Center, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shibin el Kom, Egypt;Planning and Quality Management Unit, Base Hospital, Panadura, Sri Lanka;Ukwanda Center for Rural Health, Department of Global Health, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa;

关键词: rural workforce;    rural health workers;    training;    education;    professional support;    implement;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fmed.2020.594728

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Background: There is an urgent need to scale up global action on rural workforce development. This World Health Organization-sponsored research aimed to develop a Rural Pathways Checklist. Its purpose was to guide the practical implementation of rural workforce training, development, and support strategies in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). It was intended for any LMICs, stakeholder, health worker, context, or health problem.Method: Multi-methods involved: (1) focus group concept testing; (2) a policy analysis; (3) a scoping review of LMIC literature; (4) consultation with a global Expert Reference Group and; (5) field-testing over an 18-month period.Results: The Checklist included eight actions for implementing rural pathways in LMICs: establishing community needs; policies and partners; exploring existing workers and scope; selecting health workers; education and training; working conditions for recruitment and retention; accreditation and recognition of workers; professional support/up-skilling and; monitoring and evaluation. For each action, a summary of LMICs-specific evidence and prompts was developed to stimulate reflection and learning. To support implementation, rural pathways exemplars from different WHO regions were also compiled. Field-testing showed the Checklist is fit for purpose to guide holistic planning and benchmarking of rural pathways, irrespective of LMICs, stakeholder, or health worker type.Conclusion: The Rural Pathways Checklist provides an agreed global conceptual framework for the practical implementation of “grow your own” strategies in LMICs. It can be applied to scale-up activity for rural workforce training and development in LMICs, where health workers are most limited and health needs are greatest.

【 授权许可】

Unknown