Health Ministry, USAID project launch competency framework for ICU personnel

AMMAN — The Ministry of Health, in cooperation with the Local Health System Sustainability (LHSS) Project, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), launched the competency framework for Intensive Care Unit (ICU) healthcare providers.

The framework aims to provide ICUs across the Kingdom with qualified medical staff capable of providing efficient and high-quality services within a multidisciplinary team, according to a statement made available to The Jordan Times.

This effort is a direct response to the challenges that Jordan’s health sector experienced during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic revealed a shortage of qualified, properly trained health personnel, and a lack of accurate mechanisms to verify the competencies of workers in ICU units.

Minister of Health Feras Al Hawari spoke at the launch of the ICU competency framework, stating that “the Ministry of Health worked relentlessly during the pandemic to boost its human capabilities and fortify the readiness of the health system to mitigate the effects of the pandemic”.

“The ministry, on a national level, will institutionalise an interdisciplinary ICU team that is capable of providing high-quality services in accordance with international standards and protocols. This will also ensure the integrity of the services provided,” he said.

Director of the Health and Population office at USAID Jordan Bethany Haberer, said: “Jordan’s response to the pandemic underlines the importance of activities with an immediate impact on health system strengthening and addresses the shortage of well-trained critical care staff in the ICU.”

She stressed the role of the US in supporting the efforts of the Jordanian government in responding to the challenges uncovered by the COVID-19 pandemic and reinvigorating the health sector.

To guarantee the wide adoption of the ICU framework, the LHSS project will distribute copies of the ICU framework, and train supervisors of the multidisciplinary team in ICUs on its mechanisms. The project will also build a comprehensive training programme for 575 healthcare providers from different disciplines within the ICU team.

The LHSS project, funded by USAID through the US-Jordan Memorandum of Understanding for economic development assistance, will continue to support the Ministry of Health to build the capacity of healthcare workers in the ICU, provide training and follow-up, and develop necessary frameworks to ensure quality of intensive care across Jordan.