Strengthen health systems, strengthen resilience

MESSAGE FROM DEBORA B. FREITAS LóPEZ

Moments such as last week’s 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) give us the opportunity to take stock of the challenges and progress made in health around the world. For those of us who work in social and behavior change, knowledge management, and research and evaluation – the bread and butter of CCP – it is an opportunity for us to consider how we can further enhance our efforts to strengthen health systems, a critical component of meeting UNGA goals around universal health care (UHC), tuberculosis (TB), climate crisis, and pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. ?

CCP’s work – through bilateral and global projects such as USAID’s flagship projects Breakthrough ACTION and Knowledge SUCCESS – has helped to improve quality as well as increase demand and uptake of health care services. At UNGA, a large focus was on halting TB globally. In Nigeria, for example, we know that TB is underdiagnosed, allowing the disease to spread and sicken many more people. A recent activity brought Breakthrough ACTION-trained volunteers door-to-door to seek out those with debilitating coughs and, in one state, increasing the number of people getting tested by 25 percent in a single year. ?

Of course, it is not just TB on my mind this month. I have been thinking a lot about improving the relationship between community members and their health care providers – especially building and re-building trust,?which is key to strengthening the health system and part of the pathway to universal health care. In a recent piece in the journal Global Health: Science and Practice, our staff have suggested six evidence-based ways to expand our definition of providers and examine what support they need within the health system to strengthen their capacity and skills, as well as ensure their ability to provide quality services. ?

In these and many other ways we can support the theme of this year’s UNGA: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress, and sustainability for all.

STRATEGIC PLANNING

‘We’ve Built a Reputation for What We Can Accomplish and We’ve Built Trust’

Building off a decade of success in Baltimore health programs, CCP looks to expand its domestic initiatives. Read more ?

TUBERCULOSIS

When a Cough Won’t Go Away: CCP Program Helps People Get Screened for TB

“It is amazing how evidence-based, community-centered social and behavior change interventions have changed TB case finding in Nigeria,” says Bolatito Aiyenigba, deputy project director for Breakthrough ACTION-Nigeria. Read more ?

FAMILY PLANNING

Shift From ‘Blaming’ Health Care Providers to Supporting Them for Best Outcomes

Health care provider behavior heavily influences the quality of health services and a client’s experience of care, particularly for women seeking care for family planning and reproductive health. Read more ?

NUTRITION?

Nigeria Program Provides Life-Saving Nutrition Information

Community volunteers trained by the CCP-led Breakthrough ACTION project are dispatched to provide critical nutrition advice to new parents. Read more ?