KOSOVO - State of the art hospital beds for General Hospitals
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↑ Haut de la pageAt the end of 2021, a workshop was organized by the “Health sector support programme – Phase II” in cooperation with the Ministry of Health (MoH) in order to align activities for 2022.
All this year long, the project will assist the MoH’s staff to strengthen their leadership capacities. How? Through different activities specifically oriented towards the legal and strategic management departments, with the purpose to build an adequate framework to support the separation of functions between providers and purchasers. On the MoH's side, a new health sector strategy will be created.
Also, the project will continue to support the “Strategic Management Department” by developing the internal regulations and policy documents. With a proper use of the “Division for Quality and Safety of healthcare services” within the respective department, the MoH will be able to develop new quality improvement tools that will increase the quality of service provision.
The KSV/017 project is co-funded by the Government of Kosovo and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and implemented by the Kosovo Ministry of Health and LuxDev, the Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency.
↑ Haut de la pageFor the first time since the establishment of the general hospitals of Gjilan and Prizren, several decades ago, these were equipped with the necessary technical and financial assistance by the Health sector support programme in Kosovo (Phase II) project, KSV/017, for the drafting of Gjilan and Prizren general hospitals' strategic plans 2017-2021 and the implementation of the activities foreseen in the respective plans.
During this period, the strategic plans provided a framework for the management and staff to align their programme initiaves in the service planning process. In addition, the drafting process itself and the skills acquired over the years were very useful in guiding and preparing the hospitals’ staff in managing the pandemic more strategically, which subsequently led to the provision of better services and treatment of Covid-19 patients.
As the end of the 2021 approaches, the project in close collaboration with the staff of the hospitals, will perform an evaluation of the implementation of the strategy with a twofold purpose:
The outcomes of the evaluation and the lessons learnt will pave the way for the design of the new institutional development plans for the upcoming period 2022-2026.
The project KSV/017 was co-funded by the Government of Kosovo and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and implemented by the Kosovo Ministry of Health and LuxDev.
In its further efforts to improve quality of healthcare services, the project is committed to provide opportunities for the staff of different departments at the GH Gjilan and Prizren to continue their professional development that will contribute to the usage of newly procured equipment, quality of their practice and service delivery. To this end, the project as a part of the capacity development activities within Result 2 has assisted the hospitals on organizing training courses on usage of the ultrasound techniques of the carotid vessels, radiology examinations and pulmonary functions. Once completed, the participants will receive accredited certificates from the Kosovo Doctors’ Chamber.
The project also aims to embed a quality management system (QMS), while simultaneously considering the complexity of the healthcare sector and compatibility to Kosovo context, the project during this period has helped pave the way for the staff of the General Hospitals of Gjilan and Prizren in the elaboration of quality and safety tools (e.g. SOPs) with the ultimate objective being the quality improvement of healthcare services. As shown by many studies, the development and use of SOPs compose an integral part of a successful quality system and secure a common framework and uniformity in the provision of healthcare services, thus, improving efficiency and safety for the patients. As of now, the working groups from both hospitals in collaboration with the project team have drafted twenty-two written instruction documents.
The KSV/017 project is co-funded by the Government of Kosovo and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and implemented by the Kosovo Ministry of Health and LuxDev, the Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency.
↑ Haut de la pageThe extension of the Health Sector Support Programme in Kosovo (Phase II), KSV/017, aims to continue the support given to the General Hospitals of Prizren and Gjilan by improving the Quality and Safety (Q&S) of service provision through:
Considering the importance of quality improvement of healthcare services and everyone’s role in ensuring that these services are safe, timely, patient-centred, effective, equitable and efficient, different working groups composed of doctors, nurses and technical staff have been established with a focus on improving processes, systems and clinical practices within the hospitals. The simultaneous and systematic work with the departments will result in streamlining and standardizing processes of both hospitals.
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As part of the continuous support to the General Hospitals of Prizren and Gjilan, the project organized trainings for the staff of the respective hospitals on the following topics:
In addition to the general information given throughout the presentations, special emphasis was put on patients with COVID-19, their treatment and lessons learnt during these difficult times. The audience was composed of interdisciplinary teams such as anesthesiologists, pulmonologists, infectious disease specialists and nurses from each department and in total 60 healthcare professionals were trained. The training proved to be very beneficial for both trainers and trainees, considering that the exchange of experiences from tertiary level to secondary level hospitals may help improve the performance of the latter ones.
Training on intensive care, mechanical ventilation and emergency management with special emphasis on COVID-19 situation
The KSV/017 project is co-funded by the Government of Kosovo and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and implemented by the Kosovo Ministry of Health and LuxDev, the Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency.
↑ Haut de la pageThe General Hospital of Gjilan, being one of the main beneficiaries of the "Health Sector Support Programme in Kosovo (Phase II)", has worked on improving the quality of its services during the project course. The hospital got a Computed Tomography (CT) scanner, which was considered as a major benefit for the diagnostic services of the hospital.
CT Scanner
The hospital has invested in the facilities hosting the scanner, in order to improve this service, meet international standards, improve quality and safety, and increase patient satisfaction. Around 1,000 CT scans have been performed, since the beginning of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic, leading to the cancellation of elective services, meaning that the scanner has not yet reached its full operational capability.
Despite the pandemic, the overburdened hospital staff found time to work on activities improving the quality and safety of the General Hospital of Gjilan, in order to fulfil the Quality Improvement Plan.
The "Health Sector Support Programme in Kosovo (Phase II)", KSV/017, is funded by the Luxembourg Cooperation and implemented by LuxDev.
↑ Haut de la pageAfter more than three months since the first registered case of COVID-19 in Kosovo, the whole health sector remains focused on dealing with the pandemic. The efforts to deal with the pandemic have become the top priority of the Ministry of Health and other relevant health institutions engagement in the Kosovo health sector. Kosovo, like all other countries has had to fight on two fronts: the public health side and the economic and social disruptions. Elaborating a Manual for the citizen on how to behave during the pandemic was thought to be useful in mitigating the consequences.
Kosovo has moved from a large scale lockdown of its economy and a quarantine method in many parts of the country, to a scaled opening up of its economy and public life. Accordingly, the MoH has calibrated the Manual for the prevention and combating COVID-19, in order for the opening up not to escalate into an overwhelming number of new infections.
Through this Manual, the MoH has described very specific measures to be used in sectors and buildings like: healthcare provision, public events, education, sports, shopping malls and other public locations. It also has specified under which conditions specific activities are allowed. The Manual is published online and on paper in three languages: Albanian, Serbian, and English, to make it accessible to everybody.
The Manual was supported by the Health Sector Support Programme in Kosovo (Phase II), KSV/017, in order to help the MoH in fulfilling its duties related to the pandemic, and in playing its role as the steward of health sector in Kosovo. During this period, the project team worked tirelessly to support the MOH and healthcare institutions, in facing this worldwide challenge.
KSV/017 is funded by the Luxembourg development cooperation and implemented by LuxDev.
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The Gjilan General Hospital (GGH), being one of the six public general hospitals of Kosovo, somehow sidelined by the healthcare system throughout the years, was one of the two General Hospitals (GHs) chosen for receiving support from the Health Sector Support Programme in Kosovo (Phase II), KSV/017 project. The beginning had its challenges, as there was resistance to change and new initiatives. It has been a while since working in a different manner and in a different setting was possible. But frequent workshops, trainings and introduction of new tools, as well as the purchase of the new equipment, seem to have accelerated development. Now support is coming in many spheres of their work, including: renovation, equipment and professional training.
After having renovated the new space for the CT scanner, the latter was installed, fostering the enthusiasm of healthcare workers in Gjilan. The CT scanner boasts 128 slices, the existing one being an outdated two-slice scanner. It’s the CT in the public sector with the highest performance. Beside the scanner, the Project provided the hospital with a whole set of new equipment.
Through the partnership agreement with the Murska Sobota hospital from Slovenia, two nurses provided a one-week training in Gjilan for the Surgery Department nurses, with practical and very useful lessons, including on-the-job training. The nurses from Prizren Regional Hospital also participated, creating a space for proper professional exchange with local, as well as international experience.
Through the GGH efforts to implement its five-year strategic plan, developed with the support of the KSV/017 project, the hospital has managed to involve other stakeholders. The Kosovo Hospital and University Clinical Service (KHUCS) has invested in the hospital, with a complete renovation of the Emergency Service, including new equipment, which has completely revamped this hospital service. Moreover, the outpatient clinics have also been completely renovated and reorganised, giving a completely new feel to this very important part of healthcare service provision in GGH.
The year ended with an end-of-year presentation followed by a reception at the hospital, with the management of the hospital presenting the results, and promoting the change initiated. The spark of change could be felt, as the conversations during the reception reflected another vibe for the years to come. The health professionals reflected on a successful year, with change accelerating, touching upon different key aspects of the hospital’s duties.
Kosovo hospitals continue having weak reputation due to their inability to deliver quality healthcare services to population. The reform initiated in 2011 aimed to improve the quality, adequacy and efficiency of healthcare services. The redesign of the organizational structure of healthcare institutions, including the establishment of the Kosovo Hospital and University Clinical Services (KHUCS) was one of the major pillars of the healthcare reform. KHUCS was designed as a unitary health institution composed of all secondary and tertiary healthcare institutions aiming to contribute to the integration and improvement of the quality of healthcare services.
During 2018 and 2019, the project team led by the Chief Technical Adviser, key international and national experts, supported both General Hospitals (GH) of Prizren and Gjilan in initiating improvement of the healthcare quality activities, which are integral part of KHUCS. In GH Gjilan, the team worked with the staff of internal medicine department, while in GH in Prizren with the surgery department. Gjilan Hospital was supported to develop standards of operation and patient information sheets for stroke, heart insufficiency and COPD while Prizren Hospital produced standards of operations and patient information sheets for appendectomy, cholecystectomy and abdominal hernia repair.
The standard operating procedure (SOP) is a set of step-by-step instructions compiled by health care institutions to help its staff to carry out complex routine procedures, while Patient Information Sheet (PIS) provides sufficient information for the patients for their health problems. SOPs and PISs aim to achieve efficiency, quality output and uniformity of performance, while reducing miscommunication and failure to comply with professional standards. SOPs help to bridge the gap between evidence-based medicine, clinical practice guidelines, and the local realities at the point-of-care. They are necessary to remind clinicians of the need for medical evaluations and to monitor medication compliance. The use of SOPs has the added advantages, such are:
These achievements drawn interest by the leadership of KHUCS. Above mentioned quality standards gain application among all seven units of their public hospitals network. This may be first real step, toward longer term goal of international accreditation.
On 4th of July 2019, the board of KHUCS with an official decree approved six Standards of Operation (SOP), Patient Information Sheets (PIS), and informed consent sheet for clinical conditions of Appendicitis, Cholecystectomy, Hernia, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Stroke and Heart Attack. This means that all public hospitals of Kosovo that are part of KHUCS network will be aiming to perform these procedures at international level standards. This is major progress considering that the use of clinical guidelines and a protocols for preventing, diagnosing, treating, and managing selected conditions was not enforced by legislation, and their use was left to individual initiative of medical staff.
This decision marks a peak of achievement for the General Hospital of Gjilan and Prizren, hospitals that have been supported through the “Health support Programme in Kosovo - KSV/017”.
When all these SOPs will be in place, the quality of patient care in Kosovo public hospitals will substantially improve. Hence approval of the first set of SOPs by KHUCS and their extension of implementation in Kosovo hospitals is a major step forward in improving the quality of care. This first step provides momentum to further development and extension of these quality assurance measures in other departments and clinical units of public hospitals in Kosovo.
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