Meetings

The Status of Clinic Committees in Primary Level Public Health Sector Facilities in South Africa

Published by: 
Health Systems Trust
Community participation is widely accepted as a desirable feature of any health system and is considered to be an important aspect of developing and fostering effective governance at various levels of the health system. Good governance is a fundamental tenet of South African health care and the National Health Act No. 61 of 2003, makes provision for formally constituted, broad based governance structures which include community representation at various levels of healthcare delivery. Effective governance of the health system is critical to ensure both access to quality health services and the accountability of the health services to communities.

Meetings and Minutes - Making them more effective

Volume: 
1
Series Name: 
Kwik Skwiz
Published by: 
Health Systems Trust
Implementation of the District Health System is dependent upon close collaboration among a variety of groups and individuals. The key element in such collaboration is effective communication and follow-up. Meetings and their minutes are a foundation for success. Well-run meetings promote full participation in decision-making, drawing on the groups accumulated experience and expertise. Active participation in turn enhances the success of meetings. Effective meetings can strengthen the team through promoting group ownership of decisions and improving communication. Poor meetings, on the other hand, are frustrating and can be destructive.

Short courses for nurses: A half-baked response to complex training needs?

Volume: 
1
Series Name: 
Kwik Skwiz
Published by: 
Health Systems Trust

Letter of concern expressed by Steven Donohue regarding training methods - valuable for wider audience.Recently, facilitators of the Initiative for Sub-District Support in Bothaville (David McCoy and Martha Chao) organised a two-week clinical training programme for nurses, in response to a strongly felt need amongst nurses that they lacked both skills and knowledge for the clinical responsibilities expected of them. Given the urgency, it was decided to fast track a clinical training component. But other ISDS facilitators, notably Steven Donohue, disagreed with this strategy - arguing that short course training in isolation is too simplistic a response to a complex problem. Stevens objections were spelt out quite articulately in an open letter to all ISDS facilitators.

Health Consultative Meeting Report: 12-13 November 1999

Published by: 
Health Systems Trust
The consultative meeting was convened after discussions between the Minister of Health and the Director General and Chairpersons of legislative Health Committees in the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP). The meeting was held on 12th and 13th November 1999, at the Days Inn, Cape Town