Voices from the Capacity Project

Kautoo Mutirua lives in a large country with a widespread population. “Namibia in terms of population is a small country, but in terms of geographic size it’s quite a big country,” she says. Connecting residents to health care—and connecting regions to each other—can be a challenge. “The demand is quite huge.”

Mutirua is the former director of human resources planning and development in the Ministry of Health and Social Services. Namibia “has been struggling with the issue of shortages and skills in human resources for health,” she says, complicated by vast distances between facilities and difficulties linking information between regions and the capital. Now a technical advisor with I-TECH and seconded to the Ministry of Health, Mutirua is a leader on key health sector issues, including the deployment of HR information systems (HRIS).

Information on a country’s health workers is essential for planning and decision-making. When quality data and effective reporting are in place, leaders can better understand the current workforce and plan for recruitment, training and retention. They can help deploy the right people in the right places to provide quality care.

The Capacity Project has finalized the development of an interactive eLearning course that will introduce users to the basic principles and promising practices of human resources for health (HRH).