Ms. Haji is a Senior Program Officer with the market shaping team at Results for Development (R4D) working in the Tanzania country office. As part of the market shaping team, her role is to effectively manage projects focused on improving access to medicines for mothers and children, provide day-to-day thought and technical leadership, lead internal and external stakeholder engagement and support business development efforts for the country office.

Before joining R4D, Nelsha led the strategic and annual business planning processes at the Community Care Access Center in Ontario, Canada – an arm of the Ministry of Health offering home- and community based-services to Ontario residents. As part of her role, she developed and rolled out a standardized annual business planning process and led various business development efforts for the organization. Nelsha also developed and implemented healthcare programs aimed at improving access to care and treatment for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) during her time working for the Aga Khan Hospital in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.

Nelsha holds a master’s degree in business administration with a specialization in health services management and a bachelor of science in nursing from McMaster University.

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At Results for Development (R4D), Ms. Handigol is a senior program associate on the evaluation & adaptive learning team. She executes project management and collaboration with the Tanzania Ministry of Health to test innovative solutions to improve health provider diagnosis and prescription for childhood pneumonia. She also conducts qualitative research and coordination for programs funded by USAID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation focused on health systems strengthening, evidence uptake and resiliency-building in the face of civic space closures with partners across Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, South Asia and Eastern Europe. 

Prior to joining R4D, Ms. Handigol served as Princeton in Asia Public Health Fellow based in Hồ Chí Minh, Việt Nam where she worked on HPV and cervical cancer prevention, education and access to testing. As a Fellow, Apoorva also served as a Senior Analyst with Tractus Asia, supporting global businesses on their market entry and investment strategy in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Previously, she conducted healthcare integration project management at El Camino Hospital, working on quality metric analysis to increase Medicare reimbursement for El Camino physicians. 

Ms. Handigol holds a BA in sociology & anthropology from Carleton College. She is a native English speaker and is conversational in French, Vietnamese, and Kannada. 

Additional Resources

• Translating Modeled Evidence for Decision Making – Webinar 

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Related Resource: Market Report – Amoxicillin Dispersible Tablets Progress and Opportunities

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Results for Development (R4D) has published a new report examining progress in increasing access to amoxicillin dispersible tablets (amox DT) — the WHO-recommended treatment for childhood pneumonia. The market report, Amoxicillin Dispersible Tablets Progress and Opportunities, documents progress since 2014 and highlights opportunities to overcome persistent barriers to transform access to this lifesaving commodity.

Childhood pneumonia is the leading killer of children under 5, causing more than 800,000 child deaths per year. To reduce childhood pneumonia deaths, immediate action is needed. This must include increasing access to effective, low-cost and appropriately designed treatments — such as amox DT.

The brief explores aspects of regulatory, financing, supply, demand, and appropriate use of amox DT at the global level and at the national level in countries with high burdens of childhood pneumonia, including [insert country names here]. The brief draws heavily on R4D’s experiences supporting governments in high burden countries, such as Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda, to identify and implement efforts to catalytically scale-up amox DT. These findings were also complemented by information produced by key partners

In addition to providing more transparency on the amox DT market, the brief importantly provides recommendations to market actors — including governments, manufacturers and donors — to scale up access to amox DT.

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About Results for Development
Results for Development (R4D) is a leading non-profit global development partner. We collaborate with change agents — government officials, civil society leaders and social innovators — supporting them as they navigate complex change processes to achieve large-scale, equitable outcomes in health, education and nutrition. We work with country leaders to diagnose challenges, co-create, innovate and implement solutions built on evidence and diverse stakeholder input, and engage in learning to adapt, iterate and improve. We also strengthen global, regional and country ecosystems to support country leaders with expertise, evidence, and innovations. R4D helps country leaders solve their immediate challenges today, while also strengthening systems and institutions to address tomorrow’s challenges. And we share what we learn so others around the world can achieve results for development too. www.R4D.org  

The post New brief examines challenges, opportunities in increasing access to childhood pneumonia treatment appeared first on Results for Development.

Urgent efforts are needed to scale amoxicillin DT. This market brief aims to document – primarily in qualitative terms – progress seen over the past eight years since the WHO guidance was updated to recommend the use of amoxicillin DT for childhood pneumonia treatment. Importantly, the brief also highlights key remaining opportunities to unlock persistent barriers, and to transform access to this life-saving commodity. Market barriers described in this document focus on aspects of regulatory, financing, supply, demand, and appropriate use of amoxicillin DT at the global level and at the national level in countries with high burdens of childhood pneumonia. The recommendations coming out of this brief provide strong suggestions for where country governments and partners can collectively focus attention in forthcoming years to continue improving access to amoxicillin DT by addressing key enduring challenges:

• Need for prioritization of access to amoxicillin DT in national strategies and investment cases targeting reductions in child mortality;
• Significant funding gaps persist, requiring greater prioritization by both donors and governments;
• Limited availability of internationally quality-assured products – at completive prices – within high-burden countries;
• Need for more robust quantifications and their use to inform procurement decisions; and
• Concerns around appropriate use, supported by evidence of misdiagnosis and incorrect prescription practices

In support of the Sustainable Development Goals to end preventable child mortality, combined and coordinated efforts across partners and governments of high burden countries is greatly needed to prioritize efforts to tackle the barriers documented in this brief, thus enhance scale-up of amoxicillin DT.

The post Market Report – Amoxicillin Dispersible Tablets Progress and Opportunities appeared first on Results for Development.

At Results at Development (R4D), Mr. Mateshi is a program director in Tanzania where he provides overall strategic leadership and technical direction, leads internal and external partner engagements, and manages high-impact projects and country operations for R4D’s market shaping practice. He also contributes to business development for new opportunities in the portfolio.

In his career, Mr. Mateshi has focused in improving availability of health commodities and uptake of health services. He successfully supported the Tanzania Ministry of Health in the introduction and development of various systems including Implanon NXT, an online HR management system, an online dashboard to improve data analytics and visibility for the family planning program, quantification of RMNCAH, HIV and malaria commodities, strategies and guidelines for RMNCAH and cancer programs and supporting market shaping work for family planning, maternal health, and cancer commodities.

Before joining R4D, Mr. Mateshi was a program manager with the Clinton Health Access Initiative and managed the SRH, cancer, and health financing portfolios in Tanzania.

Mr. Mateshi holds a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy and is completing a master’s degree in health economics and policy from Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences. He is fluent in Swahili and English.

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Ensuring children have the treatment they need to fight pneumonia

Learn how R4D's market shaping approach helps pneumonia treatment reach children in need.

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Since 2015, Results for Development has been supporting the government of Tanzania in implementing a holistic market shaping program focused on increasing access to Amox DT in the public and private sectors, by utilizing holistic market shaping approaches as well as evaluation and adaptive learning modalities to address the identified barriers to access to Amox DT.

These briefs summarize key findings from analysis and interventions undertaken in the program so far as well as recommended further action.

Key actions on the public sector to date include: (i) Establishing an aligned policy environment to ensure Amox DT is included on national medicine lists and all relevant treatment guidelines; (ii) Strengthening ownership and sustainability of procurement processes by supporting the transition from an external procurement agency to the country’s national procurement agency; (iii) Sourcing and administration of catalytic financing complemented by government-led resource mobilization through the implementation of co-financing agreements and (iv) Strengthening quantification and supply planning methods to accurately account for Amox DT needs in the country. These activities have contributed to a marked increase in availability of Amox DT across public health facilities from 25% in 2016 to 90% in 2022 as well as a corresponding decrease in Amox DT stockouts, from 59% in 2017 to 14% in 2022.

On the private sector key actions to date include ensuring a well-enabled policy environment; developing a holistic Pediatric amoxicillin market view which has been shared broadly with partners to increase transparency across the supply chain; and piloting the impact of ADDO (Accredited Drug Dispensing Outlet) sensitization efforts on improving knowledge, stocking, and dispensing behaviors. These activities have resulted in an increase in the number of registered Amox DT suppliers from one to eight since 2014, and a 6-fold increase in import volumes of Amox DT from 2016-2020 in the private sector.

R4D Staff who contributed to the briefs

Private Sector Policy Brief: Cammie Lee, Nelsha Haji, Yangzom Tshewang, Sarah Wangilisasi, Kimberly Churchwell, Pili Mmbaga

Public Sector Policy Brief: Cammie Lee, Aalia Chatur, Yangzom Tshewang, Taylor Salisbury, Sarah Wangilisasi, Kimberly Churchwell

Downloads

The post Reducing Child Mortality in Tanzania by Increasing Access to Pediatric Pneumonia Treatment appeared first on Results for Development.

As a senior program officer at Results for Development (R4D) Ethiopia office, he provides technical leadership and program management to the Health Systems Strengthening Accelerator project. He contributes to strategy, project management, and analytic activities to support the government of Ethiopia to sustainably finance their health systems and accelerate improvements in coverage, quality, and equity of rehabilitation services.

Throughout his career, Dr. Fitsume has focused on expanding and institutionalizing health care quality through systems thinking. As a senior health care quality advisor at Ministry of Health of Ethiopia, he championed systems thinking and knowledge management. He contributed to the design and development of Ethiopia’s Health Sector Transformation Plan and led the design and development of National Health Care Quality and Safety Strategy.

Dr. Fitsume holds an MD from Jimma University and a master’s in public health from Haromaya University. He is fellow at the International Society of Quality (ISQUa). He is native speaker of Amharic and Afaan Oromo and speaks fluent English.

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As a senior program officer at Results for Development (R4D), she supports the Momentum Routine Immunization Transformation Equity (M-RITE) project which aims to address entrenched obstacles to routine child immunization and effective COVID vaccine delivery in the DRC, Mozambique, and Kenya. She also supports the Primary Health Care Performance Initiative (PHCPI) community of practice to facilitate cross-country knowledge exchange among countries to share best practices in strengthening primary health care.

Dr. Babalola’s career has focused on expanding access to quality primary health care services to underserved populations in West Africa, supporting NGOs, national, and sub-national health authorities to design and implement public health programs. In addition, she also helped develop curriculum and strengthen capacity for health care providers working on routine immunization, HIV and TB care in Nigeria. She coordinated a training needs assessment in that country for immunization service providers which helped uncover areas for improvement in capacity strengthening for health workers. This work resulted in a 2019 research publication (see Publication below).

Prior to joining R4D, Dr. Babalola was a technical consultant for the West Africa Health Organization in Burkina Faso and the Direct Consulting and Logistics/ Johns Hopkins International Vaccine Access Center in Nigeria. In these roles, she oversaw a broad range of initiatives to improve access to public health services in West Africa. She also worked as a technical program officer at the Institute of Human Virology in Nigeria supporting efforts that resulted in improved quality of HIV care services and treatment for over 100,000 people living with HIV in that country.

Dr. Babalola holds a medical degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, a master’s of science degree in global health policy and management from Brandeis University, and a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, where she was an Edward Mason Fellow in public policy. She speaks fluent English and Afemai, her native language.

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At Results for Development (R4D), Dr. Bhanot is technical director for the Frontier Health Markets, Global Technical Assistance project where he is responsible for technical and thought leadership and strategic direction. He works closely with implementing partners, government counterparts, USAID mission staff and other stakeholders to improve health markets and promote public-private engagement for improved health outcomes.

In his career, Dr. Bhanot has served as project director, technical expert, and quality improvement specialist on several multimillion-dollar FP/RH, MNCH, HIV, TB and NCD interventions. He led development of market intelligence plans and facilitated communications between key suppliers, manufacturers, marketers, procurement agencies, and regulators to drive access to services and technologies while strengthening the capacity of facility and community providers in multiple states in India and countries in Asia and Africa.

In a prior role as deputy director for the Clinton Health Access Initiative, Dr. Bhanot facilitated introduction of new treatment devices and contraceptive technologies for cervical cancer and FP/RH interventions within state health programs in India. He also strengthened the supply chain to improve forecasting, quantification, procurement, distribution, and online information systems. As project director for health for the Palladium Group, he oversaw development and implementation of programs across Africa and Asia. He also worked with PSI on various health projects.

Dr. Bhanot holds an MBBS (bachelor of medicine and surgery) degree and an MD degree from leading medical institutes in India. He is a native speaker of English and speaks fluent Hindi.

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“Childhood Pneumonia Quality-of-Care: A closer look at frontline provider diagnosis and prescription behaviors in India and Tanzania” took place on November 9, 2021. Results for Development and RTI International hosted a distinguished group of speakers and panelists as they presented findings from recently published studies on diagnosis and prescription rates in Tanzania and the presence of a “know-can” gap in provider behaviors in India. The presentations were followed by a moderated panel discussion on the impact of these findings and related interventions which should be prioritized to drive improvements in childhood pneumonia diagnosis and prescription.

Moderator: Dr. Carina King, Associate Professor, Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institute, and Co-Chair, Every Breath Counts Research Group 

Presenters: 

• Taylor Salisbury, Senior Program Officer, Results for Development 
• Lopamudra Ray Saraswati, Knowledge Management Specialist, RTI International 
• Dr. Rajiv Tandon, Director, Health, RTI International

Panel:

• Dr. Mwanaidi Amiri, Pediatrician, Muhimbili National Hospital, Tanzania
• Dr. Ntuli A Kapologwe, Director of Health Services, President’s Office Regional Administration and Local Government, Tanzania
• Dr. Sumita Ghosh, Commissioner Child Health, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India
• Dr. Anne Detjen, Child Health Specialist, Integrated Service Delivery, UNICEF HQ
• Dr. Priya Nanda, Senior Program Officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, India Office
• Ms. Sakina Baker, Head of CSR, Philips Foundation India

The post Webinar: Childhood Pneumonia Quality-of-Care appeared first on Results for Development.