Seminar “Civil Society Perspective on Health Systems: Learnings from TACMIL Grants Project”

Technical Assistance for Capacity building in Midwifery, Information and Logistics (TACMIL) Health Project was initiated with financial and technical assistance of USAID to address selected MNCH issues in Pakistan. One of the activities under the project was to identify and address the problems in health systems in collaboration with civil society of the country. For that purpose twelve (12) grants were awarded to eleven (11) Pakistani NGOs to implement and pilot innovative models in eighteen (18) districts.

The areas of health systems addressed by TACMIL Project grantees ranges from activating health management committees, safe motherhood, mobilizing health monitoring committees, improving in public private partnership, improvement in intra natal care through capacity building, increasing awareness of masses on MNCH issues and their rights and responsibilities in this regard, using of score card technique to ascertain quality and availability of health services, strengthening district health management, behavior change techniques, addressing three delays and improvement of maternal and child care service.

Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO), in collaboration of all partner organizations, arranged a seminar on to disseminate and share the experiences and lesson to ensure sustainability of these initiatives on November 16, 2009 at Serena Hotal, Islamabad.

The seminar was attended by representatives of the implementing partners, i.e. AGAHE (Association for Gender Empowerment and Human Development); AQWDO (Al Qaim Women Development Organization); CPDI (Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives-Pakistan); GRHO (Gender and Reproductive Health Organization); HANDS; LEAD Pakistan; MAP (Midwifery Association of Pakistan); SPO (Strengthening Participatory Organization); SWWS (Swabi Women Welfare Society); Takhleeq Foundation; and Youth Organization. Also present were Mr. Asad Hafeez, Health System and Policy Unit, Ministry of Health, Government of Pakistan; Ms Mary Cobb, Deputy Chief of Health, USAID; Mr. Zafarullah Gill, TACMIL Health Project, medical practitioners and other members of civil society.

Ms Zeenia Masood, SPO, the master of ceremony, welcomed participants to the seminar and started the proceedings. Speakers at the seminar shared challenges in and recommendations for the improvements of health system in Pakistan. Challenges in and recommendations for betterment of health system in Pakistan, drawn from experiences of partner organizations of TACMIL, were presented to Mr. Asad Hafeez, Health System Strengthening and Policy Unit, MoH, Ms. Mary Cobb, Dy. Chief of Health, USAID and Zafarullah Gill, Chief of Party, TACMIL Health Project.

Speakers hoped that the concerns and perspectives on health from civil society would be incorporated in health policy and planning to ameliorate the demand and service mechanism of health system in Pakistan. Harris Khalique, Chief Executive SPO, welcomed the participants and guests and set the tone of seminar by shedding light on the issue through civil perspective.  He said “innovation is the hallmark of TACMIL Health Project and its successful models can be replicated by civil society organizations in collaboration with government.”

Mr. Naseer Memon, Provincial Coordinator, LEAD Sindh, presented overview of TACMIL Health Project and concluded with recommendations for the amelioration of health systems in Pakistan. He laid special emphasis on bridging missing links between the beneficiaries and policy makers. Memon was of the opinion that ‘there is no shortage of infrastructure in Pakistan, but it is underutilized. Hence, health system is malfunctioning.’ TACMIL focused on making health system to function properly, he commented.

Dr. Asad Hafeez said that treatment was available and needy people were there, but people did not get treatment. It shows that there were some factors that choked the flow of services to the clients. To address this situation evidence will be generated through research and presented to policy makers in a palatable form, he said. By doing so, linkage of evidence with policy would be established. Dr Hafeez suggested developing a national inventory of initiatives carried out by different organizations in health sector of Pakistan. “The purpose is to learn lessons from initiatives like TACMIL and feed these in policy making,” Hafeez commented.

Ms Mary Cobb, Dy. Chief of Health, USAID, shared her views about TACMIL project. She said that the trick was to get the service to client. Cobb expressed her satisfaction that the health issues were on the radar screen of civil society organizations working in the health sector. Mary shared initiatives, such as regulating quality of health service providers through regularity authority.

Dr. Zafar Ullah Gill, Chief of Party, TACMIL Health Project, lauded the partner organizations for sharing the results of TACMIL Health Project. He said ‘the project is geared to contribute to MDGs in collaborations with civil society organizations.’ Besides providing grants, the objective of the project was capacity building of partner organizations. If a component of health system does not work properly, then the whole system becomes dysfunctional. “Human resource, infrastructure and medicines are there, but somehow people are not getting medicine. It means there is a missing link. To tackle this challenge it is imperative to have a holistic approach to put the missing link in their place.” Zafar Gill said. The programme was concluded with vote of thanks from Zafar Zeeshan of SPO.