Quality assessment of health personnel performance in rural health services

The objective of quality assessment was to measure the extent at which different skills learned during training were practiced. An evaluation team composed of the university staff of selected specialities conducted evaluation visits to randomly selected 26 rural health units. Observation check-list was used for data collection about 190 health personnel working in the corresponding units. All health personnel categories were submitted to assessment process: Physicians, nurses, laboratory assistants and sanitarians. The results of the study revealed the insignificant association between renovation activities and the quality of health personnel performance. Good proportion of health personnel showed an acceptable level of performance except nurses for whom more training was still needed. Performance in maternal and child care was not up to standard. Both laboratory assistants and sanitarians expressed an acceptable level in administrative and technical skills. It is recommended that quality assessment on actual settings at working sites is to be an integral part of the training programs. More emphasize should be towards nurses training. Practical training especially in maternal and child care should be the methodology employed to ensure effectiveness