New I-TECH Training in Kenya Focuses on Leadership and Management Skills

Kenyan health program managers focused on strengthening their leadership and management capacities during a training supported by I-TECH held in the last week of April. Held in Nyanza Province in Kenya, the first workshop of the Leadership and Management Training Initiative represents I-TECH's first formal step into leadership and management training—a key PEPFAR program area for furthering human resources for health.

I-TECH collaborated with Family AIDS Care and Education Services (FACES) in Kisumu and the Nyanza provincial offices of the Ministries of Medical Services and of Public Health and Sanitation to develop and deliver a 5-day training to 28 provincial and district health managers working in the western region of Kenya. In attendance were medical officers and superintendents, district public health nurses, hospital clinical officers in-charge and nurses in-charge, district AIDS and sexually transmitted infection (STI) coordinators, and personnel from provincial health offices' and FACES' management teams.

The course—which is part of a larger, ongoing initiative that includes regular workshops, individual and team practical assignments, and mentoring—aims to improve the delivery of health care services by developing health program managers' management skills. Participants discuss the roles and qualities of leaders and managers; the importance of a positive work environment; communication, supervision, and team-building techniques; strategies for overcoming managerial challenges; and processes for measuring results. Participants also receive tools they can use to improve their workplaces.The highlight of the training was an afternoon spent competing in outdoor team-building exercises. Dr. Elizabeth Bukusi, Director of FACES in Kisumu, led participants through a series of physical and mental team "challenges," for which each team needed cooperate to solve. "Crossing the Border," "Carrying the Toxic Water," "Landing on Mgingo Island," and many other creative exercises fostered a strong sense of unity and camaraderie.

Participants reported high satisfaction with this workshop, and many gained a greater appreciation for

Team-building exercise, Searching Blindly.

team building and the contributions of all members. One said, "[This training] has helped me understand that everyone is important, and realize that everyone can contribute to successful performance if we support each other." Others learned that self-awareness of one's own style is essential for success as a manager. One participant shared this lesson from the training, "A change should start with me before I expect others to change." These health program managers also felt empowered by this training, with one noting that he learned that "you can change problems into challenges, and solve them."

I-TECH is currently reviewing the results of this training, to understand how to improve and apply the curriculum in other settings.