Beyond healthcare information: meeting the wider needs of healthcare providers
Overview
The availability of relevant, reliable information is a prerequisite for the delivery of effective care, but is not enough in itself. Healthcare providers have a wide range of needs: availability of essential drugs; appropriate equipment for diagnosis and surgical intervention; a cell phone to call a colleague for help; transport to a referral centre; a decent salary and working conditions… This section of the Knowledge Base aims to link HIFA2015 with other communities of practice to promote the full range of needs of healthcare providers: Skills, Equipment, Information, Structural support, Medicines, Incentives, and Communication facilities. This spells SEISMIC: a SEISMIC shift is urgently required to better understand and address the basic needs of healthcare providers. Without such a shift, the Millennium Development Goals are unachievable.
