Nyonator, Frank K., J. Koku Awoonor-Williams, James F. Phillips, Tanya C. Jones, and Robert A. Miller. 2005. "The Ghana Community-based Health Planning and Services Initiative: Fostering evidence-based organizational change and development in a resource-constrained setting," Health Policy and Planning 20(1): 25–34. (offsite link)

Research projects demonstrating ways to improve health services often fail to have an impact on what national health programs actually do. An approach to evidence-based policy development has been launched in Ghana which bridges the gap between research and program implementation. After nearly two decades of national debate and investigation into appropriate strategies for service delivery at the periphery, the Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) Initiative has employed strategies tested in the successful Navrongo experiment to guide national health reforms that mobilize volunteerism, resources, and cultural institutions for supporting community-based primary health care. Over a two-year period, 104 out of the 110 districts in Ghana started CHPS. This paper reviews the development of the CHPS initiative, describes the processes of implementation, and relates the initiative to the principles of scaling up organizational change which it embraces. Evidence from the national monitoring and evaluation program provides insights into CHPS's success and identifies constraints on future progress.

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This page updated 29 August 2005

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