IPM strategy to be introduced to better health service

Sources at the ministry said IPM, a widely accepted management tool in Europe and America, would help make the doctors, nurses and other staff of the public sector hospitals, especially at the grassroots level, accountable.

There are about 100 upazila health complexes, 58 district hospitals and 13 medical college hospitals in the public sector with some 60,000 staff, including 10,000 doctors and 15,000 nurses.

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But health service seekers in government hospitals are dissatisfied with the service delivery for various reasons, including management inefficiency, absenteeism and lack of responsibility. IPM creates a clear framework to ensure accountability within the organisation to provide optimum services with the allocated resources.

The IPM rollout programme has been taken into consideration following successful implementation of a pilot project in 53 upazilas of six districts -- Dhaka, Bogra, Barisal, Moulvibazar, Khulna and Comilla -- from June 2002. The rollout programme is likely to begin early next year, the sources said.

According to information received from the 53 upazilas, the officials and employees are now trying to perceive their respective job description in true sense. Each employee is now keeping record of individual responsibilities and indicators of performance through discussion with the supervisor.

The outlook of the officials and employees is changing as they are now participating in work plans and evaluation process. Steps can now be taken to remove bottlenecks identified through IPM charts for completing individual job, the sources said.

In the IPM process, doctors, nurses and supportive staff have to prepare an annual work plan based on their individual job descriptions and local level planning at the beginning of a year. There are three steps to follow the IPM strategy introducing work plan, regular review meeting and the annual review meeting.

About the objectives of IPM, an official said it engages all staff to achieve organisational goals, increase the level of communication between the employee and the supervisor and facilitate the employees to take part in preparing the work plan and evaluation process.

IPM also raises the sense of responsibility, partnership attitude and motivation. It helps bring spontaneity, ensure timely attendance, develop healthy work atmosphere and keep the hospitals clean.

National Health Services (NHS) in the UK used performance management very effectively to retain tight control over its health services when an extensive programme of decentralisation was introduced in 1998.

In Bangladesh, British American Tobacco (BAT) and some other organisations have been applying the IPM strategy.