Global Health Is Being Realized with One Percent Every Day
The following post is part of the Effective Health Systems Strengthening Series
In order to realize global health, health care professionals and global leaders need to believe it’s really possible. Success begins with our own mindset and approach to international health problems. I’ve adopted a philosophy that I’ve taught to hundreds of colleagues around the world and I’ve seen it make a difference – I call it the “Think Big and Reach 1% Every Day” philosophy.
For this philosophy to work you need to begin with the willingness to focus on your goals every day! Spend at least an hour every day focused on doing those tasks that will definitely get you closer to your goal of quality improvement in healthcare. Make them the center of your day and do not allow any distractions for an hour. Don’t let anything else use up your valuable time at the expense of your goals.
What kind of goals are we talking about? I mean big goals that really stretch us to do our best. Sometimes we don’t think big because we’re afraid we just can’t do it, but realizing global health won’t happen with timid goals. Ask yourself: What MUST I accomplish in order to make a difference in the health of those in my community, district or country?
Let’s say your most important goal is related to maternal healthcare – you want to provide antenatal care to all pregnant mothers in your district. You would begin by making a list of all the ways you know of doing that. For example, you have antenatal clinics three times a day in your health centers, you have outreach clinics once a month in isolated villages, or you have weekly offsite clinics in the coffee plantations or nearby garment factories for female workers.
Now, let me explain how you find your 1%. Let’s go back to our example. You could ask yourself: How many mothers must I provide with antenatal care every day? Find out how many mothers gave birth last year in your district. Let’s say there were 1000 births. Divide that by 52, the number of weeks in the year and you’ll find out that there was an average of about 20 deliveries per week in your district. To have provided them all with at least 4 antenatal visits you need to plan for at least 80 visits per week or 16 visits per day. That is your 1%! Do you see how you can apply this approach to your goal?
The next step is to make sure you are on track every day, every week, and every month. Again with our example you would ask yourself: Am I providing approximately 16 antenatal visits per day, about 80 per week? Maybe even more? Great! This would mean you’re thinking big about all the mothers in your district and reaching or even exceeding your 1% every day!
Finally, consider how to expand your 1% to reach ALL. Now it’s time to ask yourself: Who else must I reach? For example, if you believe there are pregnant mothers out there that are not receiving antenatal care, you need to figure out a system to find them and bring antenatal care to them if they cannot come to you. Let’s say there are another 1000 mothers that never get antenatal care. Your next step is to find out who is in contact with these women. Maybe a traditional birth attendant is the person you need to reach in order to connect with the women? These birth attendants can become your next 1% goal! Find out how many there are in your district. Let’s say there are 200. Can you reach two or more of these attendants every day and gain their trust so they refer their mothers for antenatal care?
I’ve seen so many healthcare professionals realize their goals with this philosophy. Please check out their success stories for inspiration. Get focused on your goal and ask yourself the right questions to reach your goals, 1% at a time every day. Success is a habit. Focus on it every day!
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