Page 104 - GHES-2-4

Global Health Economics and
Sustainability
Sustainable, competent health trainers

it was challenging for them to commit the necessary time care training. Future research should focus on the cost
against their competing clinical and/or administrative implications of this training intervention to evaluate its
priorities. Hence, a realistic and wider strategy needs to be potential for scaling up and institutionalization.
developed to create space for clinicians to work as trainers
while making continuous use of their skills. An efficient Acknowledgments
training intervention using the TOT model should result We wish to acknowledge Mr. Rajendra Kale for his efforts
in self-sustaining exponential growth and continue in the implementation of this project, especially for the
to generate an ever-widening pool of skilled human training-related activities. We gratefully appreciate the
resources. However, this swift progression demands core trainers from Pune district – Jyoti Londhe, Sujata
continued investment in human resources for health and Sawant, Meena Kulkarni, Pushpa Jadhav, Shahin Shikalgar,
enablers in health facilities, including embedded refresher Balaji Lakde, Vaishali Kardile, and Mangal Jankar – for
training, an uninterrupted supply of drugs, materials, and their contribution in designing and delivering the training
essential infrastructure. There needs to be a systematic with utmost quality. Support from the administration and
commitment to nurturing the talent of trainers through account teams at the Foundation for Medical Research is
accreditation and the provision of opportunities for sincerely acknowledged. We sincerely acknowledge the
teaching as well as learning. active support from the Government of Maharashtra in
This paper is based on the lessons from the training terms of approval of the study, technical inputs on training
intervention research projects in two rural set-ups in content, and engagement with the project activities. We
western Maharashtra. However, the findings regarding thank the District Health Office of Palghar district for
the value of the selection of appropriate candidates and their active involvement in implementing this training
the demonstrated approach of long-term and structured intervention research. The enthusiasm and dedication of
investment in building the skills of human resources could the team of master trainers from Palghar are commendable.
be generalizable across regions and populations with a Our sincere thanks to all the trainee health providers for
scarcity of skilled human resources within public health their engagement and commitment to continuing learning.
systems. We are thankful to the project advisory committee – (late)
Shri Keshav Desiraju, Prof. Mahtab Bamji, Dr. Evita
5. Conclusion Fernandez, Dr. Sujata Sawant, and Dr. Hemant Apte – for

The availability and skill level of human resources directly their guidance on the project. We would like to express our
influence the quality of MNH care, impacting the health gratitude to the team of experts from the Nutrition Society
of women and newborns. This paper provides a strategic of India, Mumbai Chapter, for providing important inputs
approach to building and nurturing skills through targeted in developing the training content related to nutrition
teaching and learning opportunities. It presents the lessons and training the Palghar master trainers. We are grateful
learned from a pilot project and the subsequent scale-up to the ECHO India team for making the virtual learning
of a skill-building intervention across two rural areas experience possible for the trainers from the remotest part
in Maharashtra. The study demonstrates the increased of Palghar district during this project.
competency of trained human resources in the Palghar Funding
district as a consequence of the intervention. However, a
systematic evaluation is needed to assess the long-term The source of funding for undertaking the study was HDFC
effects of this training on the retention of clinical and Bank, India. They provided input on training strategies,
teaching competencies among trainers and their application evaluation, and the final report of the study.
in MNH care. Essential components for a robust training
intervention include longer time frames, an adult learner- Conflict of interest
centric approach, a hybrid platform, and investment in an The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
enabling ecosystem for applying the learned skills.
Author contributions
To ensure the sustainability and scalability of the
intervention beyond the project period, it is crucial to Conceptualization: Shilpa Karvande, Vidula Purohit,
adopt the demonstrated training pedagogy and provide Matthews Mathai, Nerges Mistry
continuous learning opportunities within the public health Formal analysis: Shilpa Karvande, Vidula Purohit, Nerges Mistry
system. This pedagogy can be extended from in-service Investigation: Shilpa Karvande, Vidula Purohit, Prashant
training for maternal and newborn health care to include Kulkarni
pre-service training and comprehensive primary health- Methodology: Shilpa Karvande, Vidula Purohit, Prashant

Volume 2 Issue 4 (2024) 9 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.2963