Getting the right information into the right hands at the right time is a challenge for many health systems in developing countries. Health workers need access to reliable and up-to-date health information in order to support their clients. This health information needs assessment, conducted in the capital city and 3 districts of Malawi from July 2009 to September 2009, aimed to determine acces...

This paper considers the problems of finding measurements for the two major principles of primary health care (PHC), equity and participation. Although both are of equal importance, the authors concentrate on the assessment of participation. A methodology is put forward to define indicators for participation in health care programmes as how wide participation is on a continuum developed for eac...

OBJECTIVE An 8.3 magnitude earthquake followed by tsunami waves devastated American Samoa on September 29, 2009, resulting in widespread loss of property and public services. An initial and a follow-up Community Needs Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER) objectively quantified disaster-affected population needs. METHODS Using a 2-stage cluster sampling method of CASPER, a ...

OBJECTIVE Procedural skills education has a high priority for medical students. However, it is not clear what kind of skills they consider important and whether their perception differs from the physicians' view. METHODS We conducted a survey on 26 skills in internal medicine among medical students and physicians. Ninety-five fourth year and 62 final year students along with 67 physicians wor...

BACKGROUND In line with the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), the Morocco health surveillance system has been reinforced via infrastructure strengthening and decentralization in its regions. To plan for personnel capacity reinforcement actions, a national workforce needs assessment was conducted by the National Epidemiological Surveillance Service and the World Health Organization. ...

Between April and June 2014, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC), an International NGO, and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East (GOPA) conducted a needs assessment of Syrians affected by the crisis with the objective of gaining a better understanding of humanitarian needs and assistance priorities. Findings suggest that interventions that increase access to...

BACKGROUND The experience of transitioning to an academic faculty position can be improved with standardized educational interventions. Although a number of such interventions have been described, few utilize an evaluation framework, describe a robust evaluation process, and address why their interventions were successful. In this article, the authors apply a logic model to describe their effor...

BACKGROUND The relationship between the Mental Illness Needs Index (MINI) and the common mental disorders is not known. AIMS To investigate associations between the small-area MINI score and common mental disorder at individual level. METHOD Mental health status was measured using the Mental Health Inventory of the Short Form 36 instrument (SF-36). Data from the Caerphilly Health and Social...

mproving achievement for all students is one of the key directives of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). As schools, districts, and state education agencies wrestle with NCLB requirements—as well as state accountability systems and tight fiscal resources—the strategy of helping K–12 students become self-directed learners may seem particularly attractive as a means for reaching achievement goa...