Online Reporter
Obey Musiwa-Herald Reporter
GOVERNMENT is implementing a strategic initiative to enhance and lead health service delivery, focusing initially on central and provincial hospitals to improve overall healthcare access and quality, an official has said.
Health and Child Care Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora said this in a speech read on his behalf by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Dr Aspect Maunganidze at the launch of the improvement of health services through the 5S-Kaizen-TQM approach in Harare yesterday.
“The Ministry of Health and Child Care has adopted a strategic approach to strengthen and lead service delivery, starting with central and provincial hospitals, and yes, we look forward to district hospitals and general hospitals as well,” said Dr Mombeshora.
“By empowering provincial health executives, the PHEs, we are driving quality initiatives through key organisational structures, which will eventually be extended to district hospitals and clinics as well. This approach ensures that quality improvements are not only sustained, but also effectively spread across the entire health care system in the country.”
Dr Mombeshora added that his Ministry will monitor key quality indicators, which include patient safety, service time, availability of medicines and diagnostics, cost containment measures, staff attitudes and client satisfaction as well. He added that these factors will directly influence health outcomes such as maternal and infant mortality and morbidity.
“As care levels increase, these measures become even more critical, which is why we have gradually expanded reporting on them. It is vital that all facilities and staff align with these standards to ensure consistency and prevent misalignment that could affect our outcomes,” said Dr Mombeshora.
Japanese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr Shinichiro Yamanaka, said the implementation of the 5S-Kaizen-TQM approach brings numerous benefits.
“Not only does it enhance the workplace environment, but it also promotes continuous problem solving that leads to significant improvements in process and systems,” he said.
