Technology for primary health care

A contractor will implement the project by transferring disease control technologies; upgrading PHC management, training, and project design; and providing technical information services. The contractor will promote the integration of effective and cost-effective disease control technologies into 20 ongoing or planned PHC systems. Emphasis will be on transferring oral rehydration therapy and immunization, although other technologies, such as the use of chloroquine for the presumptive treatment of malaria, will also be introduced. A total of 400 person-months of short-term TA will be devoted to this effort, along with a modest amount of commodity support. Problem-solving TA will upgrade PHC management in a variety of areas such as establishing drug supply or health information management systems and planning referral systems for PHC personnel. Although no long-term training will be funded, the project will improve competency-based training for intermediate and village-level health workers by evaluating personnel needs and in-country training structures, developing improved training materials and courses, providing information on advanced training opportunities, etc. Remedial TA will be available to 30 Missions for unanticipated design and evaluation needs. AID/W will fund 320 person-months of TA; regional Bureau and Missions may fund an additional 380. The contractor will promote information dissemination and respond to information needs of Washington-based A.I.D. personnel by maintaining a small reference library to house information on key technologies and training techniques, the annual updates which the contractor will prepare on technical information pertinent to the project, and a list of consultants expert in project areas. Eight regional semi-annual conferences and one world-wide conference will be held to facilitate dialogue and the exchange of technical information; a total of 400 persons are expected to attend the conferences. Project Paper Amendment No. 1 of 4/15/85 increases funding in order to permit the contractor to focus on ORT in response to greatly increased demand and to finance a second contract to fill the gap in child survival services - such as immunization, control of acute respiratory infection, and other disease control technologies - left by the first contractor"s emphasis on ORT. [NOTE: The contract was subsequently awarded to John Snow, Inc. Activities under this contract are designated as the REACH (Resources for Child Health) Project.] (PD-AAQ-930)