Governance for maternal and neonatal health
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report on a postdoctoral research study examining the importance of multi-level leadership and health governance for ensuring the implementation of national and provincial health sector strategies that aim to improve maternal and neonatal health (MNH) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Design/methodology/approach
A descriptive-interpretive qualitative, institutional approach was undertaken to explore the impact of provincial and district governance mechanisms on the delivery of MNH services in two districts in East New Britain Province (ENBP), Papua New Guinea (PNG). Data were collected from 12 key informants. Informants were selected on the basis of their direct involvement in health system management and deployment of health at provincial and district health governance levels.
Findings
The analysis revealed alignment between global strategies and national and provincial policy, suboptimal provincial government support related to implementation of policy, divergent data between districts and a disconnect between the local governance mechanisms and a donor-funded initiative for raising midwifery education.
Research limitations/implications
This qualitative study was limited by the small sample size and does not claim to be representative of ENBP or other provinces in PNG.
Originality/value
This paper contributes empirical evidence to the literature on health policy, leadership and governance for MNH, by recognising and exploring the formal and informal rules at play in a given context, and examining how they are made, changed, monitored and enforced. These insights are critical to understanding how the system actually functions (or not) to implement MNH strategies in LMICs.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge the participants of the research, and academic guidance from the Associate Professor Anita Lacey, Politics and International Relations, University of Auckland. The financial assistance was received from the Kate Edger Educational Charitable Trust, Postdoctoral Research Award.
Citation
Crabtree, S. and Tolley, H.C. (2018), "Governance for maternal and neonatal health", International Journal of Health Governance, Vol. 23 No. 1, pp. 4-17. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJHG-06-2017-0030
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited