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News from and about Ukraine & Ukrainians: Ukrainian Community Press Releases
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BRAMA, May 24, 2000, 9:00am EST
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| NIS Health Partnerships Program |
Date Issued: May 23, 200O
Closing Date and Time: June 16, 2000, 12:00 Noon (EST)
Solicitation announcement in Portable Document Format (PDF).
AIHA and USAID are pleased to announce a grants competition in support of establishing a new partnership between US health-related institutions and their counterparts in the New Independent States (NIS) of the former Soviet Union, as part of the NIS Health Partnerships Program. AIHA is soliciting applications from qualified US health-related institutions willing to devote substantial in-kind resources, mainly in the form of human resources committed on a volunteer basis, to a 3 to 4-year partnership with counterparts in one of the NIS countries. Under this current solicitation, AIHA will award a partnership, in accordance with the strategic direction of USAID/Moscow, to improve primary care through the development of community-based models that show meaningful results locally and are replicable nationally. The location of the partnership is Tomsk, in Central Siberia.
On September 29, 1998, the U.S. Agency for International Development awarded the NIS Health Partnerships Program to the American International Health Alliance. The Health Partnerships Program is designed to promote sustainable partnerships between US and NIS communities and institutions that foster more effective and efficient delivery of health services in the NIS. The partnerships are expected to transfer skills, know-how, and lessons learned largely through voluntary, community-based, "people-to-people" contacts, much in keeping with the US Government’s "Partnerships for Freedom" initiative in the NIS. Through several previous solicitations AIHA selected US institutions to participate in 33 partnerships in 12 countries. These partnerships have encompassed a broad range of health-related institutions including local county departments of health, health care facilities and provider networks, community health centers, schools of the health professions, community-based non-governmental organizations, and professional associations. All partnerships are expected to develop demonstration-type interventions that are sustainable beyond AIHA/USAID funding and that have a capacity for replication. With AIHA support, they are also expected to establish mechanisms (such as training programs and conferences) for disseminating partnership successes and collaborating with Ministries of Health and Education, health insurance agencies, local and regional health systems administrations, and/or schools of health sciences to ensure that critical areas of health education and administration are adequately addressed at these institutional levels. AIHA encourages applications from institutions throughout the US that have not traditionally been involved in international development and technical assistance programs. Unlike traditional consultancy programs, the partnerships are voluntary, peer-based technical assistance programs, with an emphasis on professional exchanges, voluntary contributions and leveraging private sector resources. Funds for the grants awarded through this solicitation are provided by USAID to AIHA through sub-regional Cooperative Agreement Number EE-A-00-98-00009-00. This RFA announcement can also be found on the AIHA Web site at http://www.aiha.com. The Web site also provides answers to "frequently asked questions" about the grant process and the partnership program.II. Introduction to USAID
The US Agency for International Development is the US federal agency responsible for the design and delivery of US development assistance activities around the world. USAID has been active in the NIS since 1992, assisting the region’s transition to democratic governance and a market economy. The goals of its programs in the countries of the former Soviet Union are to promote systemic change in the key reform areas of economic restructuring, democratic development, and improved social services. USAID's principal role in the NIS has been to provide needed technical expertise and training opportunities, as well as a modest measure of material support to enable the people of the region to move as rapidly and successfully as possible through their countries’ economic and political transition.III. Introduction to AIHA
The American International Health Alliance operates under a series of Cooperative Agreements (grants) with USAID. AIHA establishes and manages partnerships between health care institutions in the US and their counterparts in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the New Independent States (NIS) of the former Soviet Union. AIHA also sponsors a number of supportive and collaborative activities, including inter-partnership conferences and a clearinghouse of information concerning health care in the CEE/NIS. Founded in 1992 by major health care provider associations and health education organizations, AIHA is the US health care sector's most coordinated response to health care issues in the CEE/NIS. AIHA has developed and refined a uniquely voluntary, community-based partnership model, in which a US community’s health-related institutions are paired with institutions in communities throughout the CEE/NIS. These have often included city, county, or even statewide relationships. Through peer-to-peer exchanges, these partnerships develop practical solutions to problems, create model programs, disseminate lessons learned, and effect broad systemic change during and after the AIHA-funded partnership period. Since 1992, AIHA has supported over 80 partnerships in 20 countries.IV. Partnership Program Goals and Descriptions
The NIS Health Partnership Program’s activities are aimed at supporting and advancing USAID’s strategic framework for the transition of countries in the region of Europe and New Independent States. More specifically, AIHA’s partnerships contribute toward USAID’s strategic goal of improved sustainability of health and social benefits and services. This objective seeks to redefine public and private sector roles in service delivery and target public assistance to people who are most vulnerable. The partnerships also establish systems that adapt successful Western practices in health care and labor market adjustment, promote increased effectiveness and efficiency in resource use, and increase citizen advocacy for health and human service reforms to meet the needs of societies in transition. AIHA’s approach to establishing healthcare partnerships in the CEE/NIS supports USAID’s strategic goal by emphasizing the following broad programmatic themes: orientation toward primary care, public health capacity-building, care management, resource management, access to information for decision-making, and democracy building. Within this framework, AIHA is seeking to develop a partnership to address community-based primary health care in the targeted community in the Russian Federation. Community-Based Primary Health Care In accordance with USAID strategies for the region, the new partnerships currently being solicited will have as their focus the improvement of primary care. These primary health care (PHC) partnerships will develop broad-based, community-oriented, PHC services in a local governmental jurisdiction (equivalent to a catchment area in a US city or county) that can serve as a model for national replication. In support of the US Government’s emphasis on the development of civil society and democratization in this region and in furtherance of promoting sustainable decentralized approaches to meeting social service needs, the partnerships will incorporate the use of a "healthy communities" methodology. This model brings all key community stakeholders together in a collaborative local health assessment and priority intervention process. Tomsk Oblast, located in Central Siberia, is a large sparsely populated region endowed with natural resources. There are sixteen regions and six towns in the Tomsk Oblast, and the city of Tomsk is composed of five municipal boroughs. The population of the Oblast is nearly 1,000,000, including nearly 200,000 children. Approximately 50% of the population live in rural areas. The partnership will work with the Oblast Health Administration and a variety of health care institutions in the Tomsk Oblast to deliver model community-based primary care. Major causes of morbidity and mortality in the Tomsk region include cardiovascular disease, work-related accidents, suicide and alcoholism. Respiratory and infectious perinatal causes of infant mortality also remain quite high. Breast cancer, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted infections are also salient health problems. Working together, the US and NIS partners will examine factors involved in restructuring the existing ambulatory care delivery system and will design a process that involves multiple sectors, disciplines, and interests within a community. Services will emphasize disease prevention, health promotion, and the development of evidence-based quality care in a family-centered primary care environment. An emphasis will be placed on integrating health services within the larger social services context and on the development of supportive community-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Community mobilization and training, or re-training, of primary health care practitioners including nurses and allied health personnel will be key features of each partnership. In seeking US partners, AIHA will favor applicants whose proposals represent the broad range of skills and disciplines required for a successful community-based program. Institutions with a proven track record in community health planning, community outreach, health education, community organization, health professionals training and primary care residency training, epidemiology and survey research, facility administration, social work, information systems, pediatrics, adult and women’s health, and finance and accounting are desirable.V. AIHA Partnership Approach
AIHA/USAID is not the principal funding source for partnership activities, but rather supplements the voluntary and in-kind contributions of the institutional partners and their respective communities in the US and abroad. AIHA partnerships historically have leveraged three dollars of voluntary support for every US government dollar provided under cooperative agreements with USAID. Through grants to successful applicants, AIHA provides support for partnership exchange travel, limited equipment and supplies, shipping, partnership communication and coordination costs, and participation in workshops, conferences, and training sessions. AIHA staff in Washington, DC and in field offices in the NIS also provide logistical and technical support and assist in monitoring the progress of the partnership. Applicants are required to demonstrate their willingness to undertake the commitments of a partner required under the AIHA partnership model, including significant in-kind contributions, travel to the NIS, hosting the NIS partners reporting on partnership activities and outcomes, and attending partnership orientations, workshops, and conferences. Partner institutions are expected to contribute the human resource component of their activities and forego customary institutional indirect charges. While partnerships vary in size, scope, and focus, the typical AIHA partnership runs for three years, followed by a "graduation" year. Partnership activities center on training exchanges between the US and NIS partners, which may involve as many as 20 person trips per year in each direction. Additional travel is undertaken for partner orientation, study tours, collaborative partnership workshops and conferences, including AIHA’s annual conference. Partners are also expected to participate in data gathering and program monitoring and evaluation efforts. AIHA expects to be an active "partner" in every partnership, providing key support services that enable the partners to maximize human and material resources by identifying and securing significant additional voluntary services from AIHA’s own strategic partners and providing a framework for collaboration within a larger international and policy context. AIHA also manages and provides supplementary funding for a number of activities designed to complement and support the individual partnerships. In addition, AIHA disseminates information and lessons learned across partnerships and throughout the region and builds capacity among multinational, cross-regional groups of NIS partners. AIHA also funds cross-cutting initiatives in areas of common interest (e.g. infection control and nursing), regional conferences and workshops, the AIHA annual meeting, publications, and technology and information resources. With regard to the latter, AIHA has created the Partnership Learning Resource Center Initiative. The LRC is a center in each partner institution which serves both as a library of clinical and management information and as a training center for staff to apply evidence-based practice approaches to promote informed clinical decision-making. Partners also share and disseminate information through the AIHA Web site and Clearinghouse. VI. Applicant Eligibility and AIHA Requirements A. Eligibility AIHA is seeking applications from US organizations or groups of organizations that would make appropriate partners and are committed to the goals of the program. Applications are encouraged from institutions throughout the US that have not traditionally been involved in international development and technical assistance programs. Unlike traditional consultancy approaches, the AIHA partnerships are voluntary, peer-based technical assistance programs, with an emphasis on professional exchanges, voluntary contributions, and leveraging private sector funds. In order to provide effective coordination and assure fiscal accountability, a lead institution must be designated. As a PHC partnership, US partners should include representation from some or all of the following types of institutions: local county departments of health, health care facilities and provider networks, community health centers, schools of the health professions, community-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and professional associations. Applications must be supported by the institutions' senior leadership and Boards of Directors, actively involve the institutions’ management team, and clearly identify an overall Partnership Coordinator.VII. Application Process
VIII. Where to Submit Proposals
The deadline for submitting proposals is 12:00 noon (Eastern Standard Time), Friday, June 16, 2000. Applicants must submit five hard copies of the proposal and one copy on diskette in the following software versions: MS Word (Version Office 97, or lower), Word Perfect (6.1 or lower), Excel (Office 97 or lower), or Lotus (5.0 or lower). These should be submitted to the address below.IX. Disclaimer
Applications are submitted at the risk of the applicant. Issuance of this RFA does not constitute an award commitment on the part of AIHA and USAID, nor does it commit AIHA or USAID to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of applications. AIHA and USAID reserve the right to reject any or all applications received. Award of the grants contemplated by this RFA cannot be made until funds have been appropriated, allocated, and committed by USAID to AIHA. Continued funding for all projects throughout their duration will be dependent upon the grantee's performance and availability of funds from USAID. While USAID and AIHA anticipate that these procedures will be successfully completed, potential applicants are hereby notified of these requirements and conditions for the award.
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