Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a New Course on Essential Skills for Women's Leadership in Global Health.

While many calls have been made to support the development of women leaders in global health, few resources have been developed and evaluated to meet this goal. We developed and evaluated a one week online short course on the essential skills for women's leadership in global health, offered in June 2021 to 22 students from 4 countries (Australia, Ethiopia, Thailand, and the United States). The course covered the state of women's leadership in global health and influencing factors; leadership theories models and frameworks; self-awareness and self-assessments; organizations and enabling environments; communication; and negotiation, and was designed to promote skills via practice, discussion, and debrief. Students rated the course highly and enjoyed the skills-building components, diversity of voices presented throughout the course, and embedded networking opportunities. Future iterations of the course, particularly those held in low-and middle-income countries, should contextualize materials, co-create with local instructors and amplify local voices, and consider incorporating shadowing, coaching, mentorship, and communities of practice

Health-worker education for disability inclusion in health.

1.3 billion people in the world experience significant disability. Yet, the competence and understanding of reasonable adjustments among health workers are in many settings inadequate to provide the same level of care to persons with disabilities as to those without disabilities. Despite the establishment of a Disability, Equity, and Justice Group for the first time ever in the Group of Twenty (G20) in India this year, the global leaders of advanced and emerging economies failed to explicitly address disability in the recommendations, despite emphasis that financial investment in a disability-inclusive health sector is an investment with dividends

Being safe, feeling safe, and stigmatizing attitude among primary health care staff in providing multidrug-resistant tuberculosis care in Bantul District, Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia

Abstract Introduction Patient-centered care approach in multidrug-resistant tuberculosis care requires health worker safety that covers both being safe and feeling safe to conduct the services. Stigma has been argued as a barrier to patient-centered care. However, there has been relatively little research addressing the issues of safety and stigma among health staff. This paper explored the issue of being safe, feeling safe, and stigmatizing attitude among health staff working with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis cases in primary health care facilities in Indonesia. Methods Using a mixed methods research design, data was collected with structured questionnaires among 123 staff, observations of infection control in 17 primary health care facilities, and in-depth interviews among 22 staff. Results The findings showed suboptimal infection control infrastructures for the primary health care facilities. The knowledge and motivation to follow multidrug-resistant tuberculosis care protocols are suboptimal. Feeling unsafe is related to stigmatizing attitude in providing multidrug-resistant tuberculosis care. Conclusion Being safe, feeling unsafe, and stigmatizing attitude are challenges in providing patient-centered multidrug-resistant tuberculosis care in primary health care facilities in Indonesia. Serious efforts are needed on all levels to ensure safety and prevent irrational stigma

Maintaining Polio-Free Status in Indonesia during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Indonesia’s polio-free status as well as the 2023 global polio eradication target have been threa- tened by disruptions to immunization services caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and related restrictions. n Fear of contracting COVID-19, human resource diversion, and travel restrictions posed barriers to delivering polio immunization services during the pandemic. n To resume polio vaccination efforts and maintain polio-free status, Indonesia health authorities need to take action to: 8 Maximize vaccine service reach by mapping children who have not been vaccinated and monitor the vaccine supply chain 8 Integrate vaccine delivery with pandemic response efforts 8 Mobilize communities for advocacy and education 8 Adjust programs to address human resource, physical, and financial resource gaps 8 Strengthen monitoring and evaluation and surveillance effort