Ghana Essential Health Interventions Programme
The Ghana Essential Health Interventions Programme (GEHIP) was developed and implemented in partnership with the Mailman School of Public Health and key partners including Ghana's Navrongo Health Research Centre, Ghana Health Service, and the University of Ghana.
Piloted in four districts, GEHIP conducted training and technical assistance programmes to strengthen the capacity of the health systems. This included both adding missing interventions and increasing support to the system structures to enhance effectiveness.
Specific attention was focused on utilizing proven interventions already shown to reduce mortality in Tanzania. This included district management team trainings combined with planning toolkits which profile budget commitments according to disease burden. In Ghana, this partnership strengthened the district-level capacity's ability to plan and set priorities. Through survey research, the rigorous evaluation of the project allowed for assessment of its impact in relation to strengthening health systems on MDGs. Advances in health systems achieved during GEHIP were used to inform national policies, with an ultimate aim to scale-up nationwide progress achieved in GEHIP intervention areas.
GEHIP conducted a plausibility trial for strengthening Ghana's delivery of community-based care, and gathered evidence that can be used for national scale-up. By developing and implementing the program in concert with diverse local stakeholders, GEHIP informed health policy in Ghana, while also further developing the country's capacity to use research to shape programs and policy.