Trainings on WHO “Pocket book of hospital care for children” in the Republic of Moldova
WHO/Anatol Tomsa
A series of training courses on the 2013 WHO “Pocket book of hospital care for children” took place in the Republic of Moldova in 2016 and 2017. The courses aimed to improve the quality of paediatric care in the country.
The Republic of Moldova counts child health as one of its main priorities. The Government initiated several significant interventions in this area during recent health sector reforms, and considers quality of care to be a key issue on the health agenda. Addressing it will accelerate progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 3.2: By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5 years of age.
Training based on the second edition of the WHO pocket book was one of the main recommendations following 2013 and 2015 assessments of the quality of hospital care offered to children and children’s rights within hospitals.
The first round of courses took place in Balti on 6–9 December 2016 and in Chisinau on 12–15 December 2016. The two events brought together 34 paediatricians from hospitals, emergency departments, admission wards and intensive care units in Balti, Chisinau, Edinet, Soroca and Ungheni.
The initiative continued in May and June 2017 with 3 additional courses. The 75 participants included health professionals from the Transnistrian Region. Through a combination of theoretical lectures and practical exercises, they focused on topics such as:
- triage of patients in the admission department;
- management of pneumonia and diarrhoea:
- neonatal health and care;
- fever; and
- health-related emergencies in children (for example, convulsions).
An international WHO expert delivered the course, which was coordinated by WHO/Europe’s child and adolescent health programme within the Division of Noncommunicable Diseases and Promoting Health through the Life-course, in cooperation with the WHO Country Office.
Next steps
The series of trainings aims to train local professionals and prepare a local team of trainers in using and applying the WHO approach and tool, and in leading further courses. Trainings for local trainers will take place in June and July 2017 on both banks of Nistru River, with supportive supervision from WHO/Europe.
The WHO pocket book presents evidence-based guidelines for clinicians that focus on inpatient management of children who are severely ill with the conditions that are major causes of childhood mortality. These include neonatal illness, pneumonia, diarrhoea, fever, severe acute malnutrition and HIV/AIDS. It is part of a series of tools for improving the care of severely ill children, and is consistent with the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness strategy for outpatient facilities.
The training courses are part of a new initiative in the Republic of Moldova, financially supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation through the United Nations Multi-Partner Trust Fund. The WHO Country Office coordinates the initiative, as well as other activities related to its 2 main areas of focus: perinatal health and immunizations.
The initiative runs from 2016 to 2019 and covers activities on both banks of Nistru River. WHO support for this initiative is envisioned in the biennial collaborative agreement for 2016–2017 between the Moldovan Ministry of Health and WHO/Europe.
