Africa-Press – Zambia. Lusaka Province Permanent Secretary, Elias Kamanga has advised public service workers to acquaint themselves with the UPND manifesto to ensure that their programmes are in-line with the aspirations of the ruling party. Mr Kamanga says technocrats should ensure that they play their role of translating and implementing the aspirations of the party in government.
Speaking when he officiated at the 2021 regional conference intended to review performance for Lusaka and Eastern Provinces under the Ministry of Health this morning, Mr Kamanga said civil servants need to realize that they work for the government of the day and must understand the policies of the ruling party.
“The UPND has indicated its desire to ensure adequate manpower and medicines among health facilities, and the technocrats should ensure that they work towards achieving these desires,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary emphasized the need to ensure defective medicines are not distributed in the country stating that ZAMRA should perform its due role.
“All officers should be professional in their conduct; the Ministry of Health should also make sure that the services reach people in rural and remote areas,” He said. Mr Kamanga also emphasized the need to look at local interventions to develop a local vaccine that will help instill confidence regarding the safety.
He noted that the covid-19 has been in the country for over a year stressing that experts should come up with interventions that can respond to the needs of the people.
The Permanent Secretary stated the need to come up with sustainable systems that will be responsive to the needs of the people regarding the pandemic.
Mr Kamanga also noted that quality improvement conferences provide a platform for healthcare professionals to connect, share learning and innovative ideas, and discuss effective approaches to quality and safety improvements.
“Improving the quality performance in health services can help health providers with reliable, cost effective and sustainable process that can enable the country improve service delivery and enhance health outcomes.” He said.
And Director; Quality Performance and Improvement at the Ministry of Health, Jelita Chinyonga said performance reviews have been helping the Ministry improve health outcomes in HIV, TB and maternal health.
Dr Chinyonga noted that such reviews have also help strengthen systems that help service delivery as the annual meetings are look at research papers that outline important issues intended to improve service delivery.
Meanwhile, Lusaka Province Health Director Consity Mwale said research is an important element in the provision of quality services to the people. Dr Mwale noted that health interventions are refined, made sustainable and have a high impact through research.
He highlighted the importance of reviewing performance key indicators in determining what works and what does not work in the provision of services. “This helps improve quality assurance,” he noted.
