Human Resources and Staff Management. The CS team is made up of 14 health post managers, 7 CARE Extensionists, 1 CARE CS Specialist, 1 CARE Project Manager, plus the MOH Municipal Management Team (6 members: Director, Sub-Director, Education Specialist, Integrated Health Specialist, Head of Nursing, and the Health Educator). CARE CS staff participates in the Municipal Technical Board and have assisted the MOH to improve the efficiency of board meetings including the preparation of an agenda, problem analysis, definition of plans, and determination of the responsibilities of each person. The improvement in the meeting methodology helped the MOH to assume a stronger leadership role in the municipality. The following mechanisms are in place to assure the continuation of CS activities after the project ends: the MOH supervision system has been improved an is functioning smoothly; there are strong links between Health Posts and communities assuring supervision of CHWs and community health activities; a Municipal Health Commission has been formed to xxxxxx collaboration among agencies; and the Municipal Technical Board oversees quality, coverage and expansion of basic preventive and curative health care. Motivation among both CARE and MOH staff is high. There is a sense of teamwork and self- motivation and commitment and dedication to the fieldwork. At the time of the MTE one Extensionist had left and 4 new people entered the project. A redistribution of communities was done to extend the Extensionist’s time per community. Other than this, there has been little rotation of personnel at CARE and hardly any rotation of staff at the Municipal MOH or at the Health Posts. The stability of staff has been a key factor in the success of the CS Project. Due to a physicians strike, the Municipal MOH named RANs as heads of Health Posts. The RAN is generally more permanent while the physicians rotate based on their obligatory service as part of their medical training. Currently 2 physicians and 12 nurses head the14 Health Posts. CARE is assisting project staff to locate other jobs, now that the CS Project is ending. All staff that could be relocated with other CARE projects has been reassigned. Training has been provided to staff in English and computer skills, which will enhance their opportunities for employment. The Human Resources Officer at CARE Managua gave a workshop to the staff on how prepare curriculum vitas and to do well during job interviews.
Human Resources and Staff Management. Some complaints were made in terms of lack of communication related to the management of human resources in the prior CS-12 project. For example some people being fired without notice and just plainly disappearing from the office with no chance to bid farewell. This makes the staff uneasy and fearful that they would be next ones. They understand they are under contract and that their terms are finite, but feel unstable during the contract period. Technical staff turnover has been low in CS-16. No staff has left the program so far and another trainer joined the NV team two months ago. The greater challenge has been recruitment at appropriate skill level. Usually when a contract ends the staff is given opportunities to apply for positions in a new project if one is to come. Otherwise they will engage in other projects or other NGOs given their training, skills and experience. Going back to work in MOH was not mentioned as an option. We were told that all staff has job descriptions, although we did not see them. However due to the performance of certain elements, for example the district directors, there is a need to make sure the job descriptions are detailed enough to ensure their performance. The new director should understand the need to travel monthly to and work in each of the districts, in order to accomplish transfer of management skills and data analysis and lay the groundwork for sustainability. The technical staff is cohesive, committed and enjoy their work. They are very much engaged in the activities and truly believe on what they are doing. All are skilled in their dealings with the community and easily establish rapport with them. They feel the need for leadership especially since the Program Manager left two weeks prior to the evaluation. The relationships with district and CLCS members is excellent and that impacts positively the program and on the organization. They seemed to quickly absorb more new skills and perform better when they have direct guidelines. The ability to work independently can be build over time if they are given proper responsibilities.
Human Resources and Staff Management. Strengths
Human Resources and Staff Management. The CSP got off to a late start, the IEF Project Advisor was not in place until 2/00. CSP field staff are permanent CEPAC staff so they were able to immediately come on board, but lacked leadership in getting the project going. Stability in the staff has been good until recently, in 5/01 the CEPAC Health Co-Manager left the project and as of 10/01 the IEF Project Advisor resigned. These changes always effect project implementation, even though the IEF position was rapidly filled and trained. XXXXX does not plan to replace the Co-Manager position, they feel the job responsibilities can be absorbed by other staff. The relationship between IEF and CEPAC staff is positive and in general staff morale is high and job satisfaction good. How the roles and responsibilities for the project are divided between CEPAC and IEF needs to be reanalyzed due to the change in IEF Bolivia Advisor position. There is quite a bit of difference between the type of technical expertise offered by the previous Advisor and the skills of the new one. CEPAC and IEF should review the budget and weaknesses identified in the MTE and quickly make some decisions on staffing for the next 2 years. Program implementation is weakened by lack of sufficient field staff to carry out project activities. The position of Project Assistant had been vacant during the two years of the project, except for a three month period. The project assistant position was originally intended to work into the Project Advisor position, replacing an expatriate with a Bolivian national. This has already been accomplished. The position of Project Assistant should be reviewed based on the needs of the CSP for the next two years. A part-time Administrative Assistant/Secretary position, which could provide much needed logistical and secretarial support to the CSP should be considered. The IEF country representative receives $12,000 (20% of $60,000 salary) annually from the CSP while offering little support to the project. Due to geographical distance and lack of knowledge of public health and/or CS experience the impact of this position on the CSP is minimal. While IEF’s long term strategy for providing eye care services and establishing a presence in Bolivia is positive, the CSP should not suffer from lack of adequate staffing to achieve that institutional goal. A serious revision of staff positions paid for with CSP funds needs to be made, especially for IEF staff. This should include a revision of roles and responsibilit...
Human Resources and Staff Management. The most significant change since the MTR is the discontinuation of the annual personnel performance appraisal or review. This is now done in group settings where there is no direct feedback on performance to staff members and no opportunity to discuss short- and long-term personal and career goals. Several employees expressed the view that the old system would be preferred as it was more personal and done specifically. The reason given for dropping this exercise is the time required and the many demands of the project. It was simply a matter of not having sufficient time. Other than faculty members, staff work on one-year contracts. Although there are no performance reviews, staff performance is monitored and if a person’s work is judged to be unsatisfactory, they are given contracts for a shorter period, anywhere from one to six months. It is a form of probation. If their performance does not improve, they are either asked to resign or their contract is not extended. All staff, regardless of position or performance, receive a 9% annual salary increment. No one seemed to be concerned that that was below the current inflation rate. There have been significant staff turnover and position vacancies during the course of CLICS. For example, the position of Project Coordinator was vacant for a year. As mentioned in the MTR, the Project Officer for BCC was not filled for three years. In addition, the MIS Officer left the project after less than two years. This did not seem to negatively impact the project although it was one of the factors that contributed to under spending of the project budget. The staff is confident of their abilities, qualifications and employability. They believe they are better qualified now after having had the experience of working in CLICS and after CLICS they will be employed in another MGIMS project or, if necessary find a good position elsewhere since having worked at MGIMS will give them good standing.
Human Resources and Staff Management a. Personnel policies and procedures of the grantee and partner organizations to continue program operations that are intended to be sustainable
b. Morale, cohesion and working relationships of program personnel and how this affected program implementation.
c. Level of staff turnover throughout the life of the program, and the impact it has had on program implementation.
d. Plans to facilitate staff transition to other paying jobs at the end of the program
Human Resources and Staff Management. Essential personnel policies and procedures have been established in the Area Health Centers of Carabuco, Ancoraimes and Puerto Xxxxxx. Salary incentives are provided by CSRA to motivate MOH staff to incorporate specific activities related to the census-based, impact-oriented (CBIO) approach. Although a good working relationship exists between CSRA and MOH staff in Puerto Xxxxxx and Ancoraimes, this was not the case in Carabuco at the time of the final evaluation. Since the MOH has the option of choosing the Area Health Director, this individual may or may not be interested in the CS Project approach. Interviews during the final evaluation showed that in the two Health Centers where cohesion and a shared vision exist, both MOH and CSRA staff stated “WE ARE ONE FAMILY”. This statement is most impressive and shows how people can be united around a goal that transcends individual agendas. Except for the situation in Carabuco, where two successive Area Health Directors have not embraced the CS Project goals, staff turnover has not been a problem. CSRA has made efforts to assure employment for CS Project staff after grant funding ends, particularly in Carabuco and Ancoraimes. Several salaried slots have been created over the past 2-3 years, which have provided employment for former CSRA personnel.
