Project Plan Forecast
Project progress will be evaluated at monthly meetings with senior administrators, and by field inspections. The steering committee will meet at least once every six months. Annual status reports will be circulated to all concerned parties, including the major donors, at the end of each year and within 60 days following the end of the fiscal year. Adjustments to the program will be made as and when necessary, and new and/or innovative ideas for improving the service will be field-tested when deemed appropriate.
Time Forecast
The goal of George Foundation is to incorporate 1000 PHCs into the program in the first phase spanning 5 years: 2006-2010. Initially, PHCs will be selected in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu; subsequently, additional PHCs will be selected throughout India. While the entire 1000 PHCs will become operational within the initial 24 months, they will require another 2-3 years to achieve their desired full and effective capabilities. This will be accomplished in coordination with State agencies and NGOs. Based on the calculations presented above, we anticipate a total outlay of 0 Million toward this. Since each PHC reaches between 20,000-60,000 people, this modest start will address issues of primary health care and health education for about 40 million Indians (6% of the total) in rural areas.
The Project Closure Report will be written for a broad audience including senior management, steering committees, and the major donors.
The project closure report will include the following information for presentation:
- Final updated Project Status Report showing the original project plan and the actual project performance at completion- tasks, schedules, resources, and other necessary information.
- Description of the final products/services delivered by the project.
- Lessons learned from the project – technical, business process, management, etc. What worked well and what didn’t. Things that will be of value on future projects and things to avoid.
- Specific feedback to/from any of the constituencies involved with the project.
- Other documentation – project history, user documentation, and system documentation.
Projects rarely run through their full life without some surprises. It is hard for the customer or project sponsor to work out which situation they are in before it’s too late to fix problems economically. That is where a project audit comes in: an independent assessment of some or all aspects of the project’s health buys at the least peace of mind, and in other cases can make the difference between problems nipped in the bud and a project whose timescales and costs are out of control.
George Foundation will assign two consultants to a project audit because pair working greatly speeds up the analysis process, and, for most project audits, time is of the essence. The list below spells out the full range of issues that a George Foundation project audit might address. We expect to review the work in progress regularly at least weekly with the sponsor, and this allows us to shift the focus as the analysis reveals more details about the situation.
Areas of Investigation
Project management
Ø Does the project communicate effectively with its sponsors and other stakeholders?
Ø Are decisions taken rationally and quickly?
Ø Does the management team have appropriate skills and experience?
Project organization and staffing
Ø Is the project divided into effective work units (teams)?
Ø Are the teams located appropriately?
Ø Are responsibilities clear?
Ø Is internal and external communication effective?
Ø Does the staff have appropriate skills and experience?
Ø Is staff working in a suitable physical environment?
Project processes
Ø How are tasks identified and allocated?
Ø How is progress measured?
Ø How is change handled?
Ø Is there proper version and configuration management?
Project planning and reporting
Ø What kind of plan is there?
Ø Is the level of detail appropriate?
Ø How is the plan validated?
Ø How is progress against plan reported?
Ø Is the project actually at the point where progress reports say it is?
Ø How feasible is achieving the future goals in the plan?
Technology choice and usage
Ø What tools and technologies are being used?
Ø Why were these tools and technologies selected?
Ø Is the selection in line with industry best practice?
Functional requirements
Ø What is the requirements analysis process?
Ø Do users feel involved in the process?
Ø Are the requirements clear, complete and consistent?
Software design
Ø How are functional requirements turned into solutions?
Ø What kind of design documents is produced?
Testing
Ø What kinds of testing are carried out?
Ø Is there a “test first” or “test driven” philosophy?
Ø Is testing automated?
Ø How are test cases identified?
Ø What kinds of test tools are used?
Cost Breakdown The following 3 types of costs are associated with the project: 1. EDPS2000 Development Cost The George Foundation will be investing .2 Million in the design, development, and enhancement of EDPS2000. Further development or enhancement costs are also likely to be substantial but it is not included these costs in the estimates. 2. Pre-operating costs per PHC
a. Improvement of PHCs
: Rs. 250,000
b. Solar Panels and batteries:
: Rs. 300,000
c. Computers and Printers
: Rs. 50,000
d. Lab for urine, blood and stool tests
: Rs. 50,000
e. Medical Supplies, Stationery, etc
: Rs. 50,000
f. Furniture and fixtures
: Rs. 20,000
Total
: Rs. 720,000 (,800)
3. Operating Costs per annum per PHC:
a. Project Coordinator (1/5 time Physician)
: Rs. 60000
b. Paramedic/Computer Operator
: Rs. 72000
c. Nurse/medical assistant
: Rs. 84000
d. Lab Technician
: Rs. 72000
e. Transportation
: Rs. 30000
f. Consumables
: Rs. 32000
g. Other
: Rs. 50000
Total operating cost per annum
: Rs. 400,000 (,200)
Total Costs
Estimates are to amortize the pre-operating costs over five years. Based on this, an expenditure of Rs 544,000 per annum (,200) per PHC in the initial year is expected. To the above estimates, 8% per annum increase in cost is added due to inflation, and a 20% for expenses towards a) maintaining Support and Training Centers, b) coordination and monitoring of PHCs, c) enhancement of EDPS2000, d) development and distribution of health education materials, and e) administration and fiscal management of the project. The total then amounts to Rs. 4,880,000 (about 0,000) per PHC over a five-year period.
A Steering Committee consisting of representatives from the donors, The George Foundation, government officials, and local communities will oversee the project. An International Advisory Board will assist this committee in setting priorities and policies. Day-to-day operations will be carried out by a management team under the supervision of The George Foundation. Funds received will be credited to a Trust account in a bank(s), and will be operated by The George Foundation. The George Foundation will have the overall responsibility for executing the project, and will coordinate its activities with government agencies and other NGOs participating in the program.
The Head Office will be adequately staffed to perform overall management and administration of the project. It will include a Project Manager, several Assistant Managers/Coordinators, accountants, software engineers, and consultants, as required. Development of training and educational material, on-line communication with PHCs, and other centralized functions will be carried out by this Head Office.
For every 50 PHCs, there will be a Support and Training Center. It will be staffed with a project administrator, 5 field coordinators (social/health workers), 3 computer technicians, and 2 staff members for training PHC staff under the supervision of a physician. These Centers will be responsible for responding to the needs of their respective PHCs (repair of hardware, updating of software, allocation of medicine and supplies, training, coordination, etc.), and for monitoring their activities. These centers will be established within their respective communities, and will store and handle supplies and medicine needed by the PHCs. The project administrator is responsible for keeping the Head Office informed of the progress, and for executing its directives.
While each PHC operates independently, one physician will be assigned to every 3-5 PHCs, and will be responsible for ensuring the quality of health care delivered by them. Field coordinators will oversee the activities of PHCs. There is an anticipation of the involvement of local NGOs in the smooth running of PHCs, and for providing assistance in delivering health education and for social activities. Social/health workers will be empowered to develop peer groups. These individuals will be selected from within the community to act as teachers and role models. To facilitate dissemination of information and for building trust within the community, the organization shall provide financial incentives to the peer groups to partially compensate their efforts.
Support and Training Centers
Support and Training of PHC personnel will be the responsibility of the Support and Training Centers established for every 50 PHCs. Support activities will consist of recruiting PHC staff, set-up of facilities, supply of medicine, maintenance/repair of hardware, coordination of transportation, interaction with local community, etc. Field coordinators and computer technicians will carry out most of these activities. Arrangements with doctors and hospitals/clinics in the nearby areas will be made for handling referrals from PHCs. Involvement of local NGOs will be encouraged.
Support activities will be coordinated and made efficient through on-line communications, tracking procedures/systems, pre-maintenance, periodic status review meetings, and other techniques. The goal is to ensure that PHCs are fully operational at all times to serve the community.
Training of PHC staff will cover the following areas: a) administration of PHCs, b) use of EDPS2000 system, c) conducting laboratory tests, d) proper understanding of the cultural and social norms of the area, and e) how to carry out health education. Comprehensive training for the above will be conducted at the Support and Training Centers, which will be followed by on-site training at the PHCs under the supervision of physicians and field coordinators. Training materials and User Guides will be supplied.
The EDPS2000 operator is expected to have basic understanding of English, enough to input information into the computer and read and translate the questions posed by the computer from English into the vernacular. The complete training course material for the lab technician and the EDPS2000 operator will also be made available at each PHC as an interactive software package on a CD. One of the most important aspects of the training will be the communication skill of the staff. In additional to English, they will need to be fluent in the language of the community they serve. Since gaining the trust of the community is the foundation stone of our approach. Training to provide health education will be an integral part of the program.
Health Education and Community Activities
Initially, the organization shall concentrate on the following community health education related activities: Training of local women as midwives to reduce risks during childbirth.
1. Instruct women on pre and post-natal care and early childhood development.
2. Provide information on family planning and birth control.
3. Give instructions on simple practices that improve hygiene and sanitation.
4. Provide instructions on how to make drinking water safe.
5. Provide information on how to reduce the risk of communicable diseases.
An educational course on health and hygiene, emerging pandemics (TB, malaria, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV), addictions (alcohol, tobacco, drugs), abuses (emotional, physical, sexual), and environmental concerns (air and water pollution) has already been developed in Microsoft PowerPoint 97. At present this material is information rich and in the form of brief summary statements — an information resource organized by topics. Offering health education and learning how to communicate the message in a simple manner will be an integral part of the training for the entire staff. It will be available at each PHC so that the staff can refresh their understanding as needed.
A second important way in which we propose to deliver these instructions is to develop homegrown video demonstrations. These will be recorded using local people who hold the respect of the communities, and using local situations to provide better identification with the problems and the solutions. These videos will be duplicated for distribution and the local PHC staff will be trained to further explain and demonstrate the procedures so as to make their adoption easier.
Instructions will also be offered to the community at the time of visit to the PHCs. Computer will be use at the PHCs and a television with a video player to continually provide this information while patients/families wait for their checkup.
Local community centers and village meetings are other forums for presenting the information. NGOs and social workers will be provided the necessary tools, like the homegrown videos, to enable them to educate the rural population on health issues. The field coordinators will organize the above activities with the assistance of local NGOs and community leaders.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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