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Medical Workforce Support Program (Vanuatu)
Current DFAT support for the medical workforce in Vanuatu is provided through in-line medical specialists, visiting medical specialist teams, and scholarship schemes. In early 2014, the Government of Vanuatu (GoV) requested the Government of Australia (GoA) to provide a further three (3) years of support for the medical workforce, to build on the latest phase of Australian assistance. This will be delivered through the new Medical Workforce Support Program (Vanuatu) (MWSPV).
The shared long term goal of the GoV and the GoA is that the GoV, through the Ministry of Health (MoH), maintains and continually strengthens its delivery of clinical health services under the leadership of senior ni-Vanuatu doctors. MWSPV will be a key strategic intervention for strengthening senior ni-Vanuatu doctors’ capacity to lead and manage themselves and their staff, and plan and implement clinical health system strengthening processes and systems.
The first area of focus is to strengthen leadership and management capacity of senior ni-Vanuatu doctors, and related aspects of clinical governance and broader health systems. New knowledge and skills and, in particular, improved clinical systems will contribute to greater efficiency, improved patient safety and patient outcomes.
A related stream of activity will help to ensure that hospital performance systems (e.g. teaching ward rounds, journal clubs, peer review meetings, medical records, death audits, involvement of senior medical staff in analysis of hospital efficiency indicators) and a competency-based medical internship program are in place and adequately supported. Development of clinical systems will include better planning and budgeting for provincial outreach visits from the central level.
The third broad area of focus is to maintain the supply of international doctors to fill essential services gaps, and to involve them in capacity strengthening activities for ni-Vanuatu doctors and clinical systems. The Program also marks a three-year transition period from the commencement of the Contract during which the level of Australian support for international placements will be progressively wound back – hence the emphasis on the other two focal areas of support.
DFAT seeks to engage a Managing Contractor for MWSPV to assist the GoV to maintain and strengthen its health services through improved medical workforce capacity development and provision of essential overseas clinical specialists with an estimated budget of AUD3million over three (3) years.
As per RFT documentation.
DFAT proposes that any Contract arising from this RFT will have an initial term of three (3) years, with an option to extend the Contract for further terms of up to a total of two (2) years, exercisable at the discretion of DFAT and subject to funding approval.