The Nauru Ministry of Health and Medical Services requested support for the
development of a comprehensive suite of health system standard operating procedures; the design of a performance management system that linked annual work plan objective setting, managing and assessing performance; and for overall support in developing capacity.
What we did
In May and June of 2022, Mandy Whyte and Julie Affleck were contracted by DFAT’s Nauru Health Services Support Program (NHSSP) to assist the Nauru Ministry of Health and Medical Services (NMHMS) to revise and develop operating guidelines and procedures to reflect the recent restructuring and the 2022 Annual Plan. The work was done in-country, during COVID-19 which mandated quarantine in Brisbane and Nauru,
and remotely from New Zealand.
How we did it
Mandy, a management specialist and editor, travelled to Nauru to meet with NMHMS
directors to identify priority work that could be achieved within the final two months of
the NHSSP. With 20 years of experience in multiple countries in the Pacific and
Southeast Asia, she was able to mobilise, adapt to a new environment and establish
relationships quickly, and start delivering outputs.
The agreed workplan included drafting procurement, human resources, and hospital
operations guidelines and editing guidelines for COVID-19, infection prevention and
control, patient referrals, and patient care guidelines.
Julie, a development specialist, supported the assignment remotely providing technical advice on human resource management, quality assurance and editing selected
documents.
Whilst in Nauru, Mandy developed a day-long workshop on the principles of document development and delivered this to 35 hospital staff in three workshops.
The combined experience and skills and the responsiveness of this two-person team provided the NHSSP with additional hours, a broader skillset, greater flexibility and
availability, and overall value for money. Mandy received backup support from Julie
while in-country and this enabled the team to achieve assignment objectives within a
tight framework with a hard finish date.
Benefit for the client
Too often, organisations underestimate the time and effort required to draft, revise,
consult on, edit and proofread documents that are good enough to provide clear and
adequate guidance to staff. Counterpart Nursing Policy and Standards Director Moralene Capelle said, “The workshops and ‘document clinics’ that followed the document distribution were a great opportunity to build knowledge and ownership by staff, and the confidence to create and edit their work.”
The Future Partners team has provided post-assignment support to the NMHSS, pro
bono, to support the staff and community of this wonderful little island.
Nauru Health Services and Support Programme, 2022