On September 14th, the global health community of Washington, DC will come together to share evidence-based best practices and state-of-the-art information at the Global Health Mini-University, sponsored by USAID.
PSI experts will present at several of the Mini-University’s concurrent sessions, sharing lessons on family planning, non-communicable diseases and universal healthcare.
If you’ll be joining the Mini-University, find details about PSI’s presence below.
9:45-10:45 AM — Voice Her Choice: A Client Centered Approach to FP Counseling
Laura Glish, PSI, Alexandra Angel, PSI, Anna MacKay, MSI
When providers counsel women on modern methods of Family Planning (FP), they are increasingly encouraged to focus on method effectiveness. Yet, for women, effectiveness is only one concern among many. Marie Stopes International and Population Services International have developed new, more client-centered counseling tools for FP providers. These tools address the questions and concerns about return to fertility, bleeding changes, and discretion that women often have. These innovative tools aim to provide women women and girls with FP counseling sessions that tailor method recommendations to her preferences, thereby improving her satisfaction with the counselling process, increasing rates of FP uptake, and decreasing rates of method discontinuation through managing expectations. This Mini-U session reviews traditional tools and allows participants to test-drive PSI’s and MSI’s new client-centered tools.
9:45-10:45 AM — Reimagining NCD Interventions: A Skill-building Workshop for Creative Problem Solvers
Cat Normile, PSI, Andrea Edwards, PSI, and Richard Crispin, CollaborateUp!
Introducing the theme of creative problem solving and health innovations, the TED Talk-style presentation by PSI representatives will discuss NCD-related health challenges in low- and middle-income countries. Following this, CollaborateUp will lead the audience through a case study, facilitating collaborative efforts through role playing to co-create solutions addressing key barriers to NCD care.
11 AM-12 PM — Innovative multi-sector models increasing access to hypertension services in Asia
Heather White, PSI, Rebecca Dirks, FHI 360 and Helen McGuire, PATH
36% of adults in the Southeast Asia Region have hypertension and rates are increasing. The session opening will provide an overview of the burden of NCDs in Asia, establishing the context and scale of need. Following this, three ongoing projects addressing hypertension in Southeast Asia will be presented by representatives of PSI, FHI 360, and another global health NGO. Each project approaches the challenges of NCDs differently, including through community-based prevention and control and market development. Presenters will speak to the current progress and lessons learned from their interventions through a moderated discussion and Q&A with the audience.
2-3 PM — Launching a New Contraceptive: Lessons from the LNG-IUS
Laura Glish, PSI, Kate Rademacher, FHI 360, Anna MacKay, MSI
The levonorgestrel intrauterine system (LNG-IUS), commonly known by the brand name Mirena, is one of the most effective forms of contraception and offers important non-contraceptive benefits. The product has been gaining market share and helped revitalize interest in long-acting contraceptives in Europe and the U.S. However, until recently, the high cost of existing LNG-IUS products has limited availability in developing countries. The landscape is changing with the introduction of new, more affordable products. Several LNG-IUS pilots are launching in developing countries in 2017 with a range of partners to build global evidence for the feasibility and impact of this new product. This session will cover various strategies used and lessons learned in these launches through the four Ps of marketing: Product, Place, Price, and Promotion.
2-3 PM — Preferences and Priorities: Applying Stated-Preference Methods for Health in Sub-Saharan Africa
Kristen Little, PSI
Stated-preference methods are survey tools that policymakers, implementers, and researchers use to understand the priorities and preferences of stakeholders for goods and services not yet available. Stated-preference methods are used extensively in other development sectors (e.g. transportation, agriculture, environment). Applications to public health in sub-Saharan Africa have only emerged in the last decade. The Stated Preferences Research Team at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and collaborators advance these methods to shape interventions and guide programs. In this session, attendees will 1) review preference study findings on IPT delivery for pregnant women in South Africa and uterotonic security investments in Kenya; 2) preview a new study design on PrEP deployment for FSWs in Tanzania; and 3) interpret real-time survey results.
3:15-4:15 PM — Get That Contract Signed! Promoting Public-Private Partnerships to Achieve UHC (R4D, for SIFPO2)
As countries strive for universal health coverage (UHC), governments are looking for more effective and efficient ways to deliver affordable, quality health services. However, the gap between current health coverage and UHC goals highlights many resource constraints and technical challenges involved with implementing this agenda. Now, governments are considering the option of working more closely with the private sector to help fill gaps and address system needs through public-private partnerships (PPPs). In this interactive session, participants will learn about and design/negotiate a PPP from the public and private sector perspectives; the process will draw directly from recent work by R4D/PSI under the USAID-supported SIFPO2 project. Learners will use this simulation to inform the broader discussion of how countries can establish stronger PPPs to achieve UHC.
Banner photo: © Population Services International / Banner Photo by: Gareth Bentley
