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Standards of Care for Health Centers: Volume 1, Health Center Management

Health for all is an achievable goal for the citizens of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan where primary care focuses on providing high quality preventive, promotive, and curative care in a cost-effective manner. The Jordanian Ministry of Health and USAID-funded Primary Health Care Initiatives Project (PHCI) have formed a partnership to reach this goal. The Standards of Care for Health Centers described here represent a milestone in the road towards better health. They are tangible evidence of the considerable thought and effort that has been devoted to promoting quality of care by the Ministry of Health. The purpose of the "Standards" is to ensure that health center staff members have the basic and essential guidance required for safe, effective, and humane service delivery. The Standards are contained in five volumes, each addressing a distinct aspect of health center services. A sixth volume of performance checklists is included with the Standards to facilitate self-assessment and performance review. As a set, the Standards are intended to serve as a convenient reference, a guide for service delivery, and a tool to support performance improvement. When following the guidelines set forth in the Standards, members of health center staff are assured that services meet the accepted standard of care required by their communities. This is one of 6 volumes, and this volume is described below: Volume 1: Health Center Management The Management Standards are organized in four sections. The first section contains job descriptions for staff providing direct and supportive care at health centers. The descriptions are meant to serve as a job aid for those who hold the positions and their supervisors rather than a model for staffing. The second section conveys the expected values and norms for health center services through a description of patient and provider rights and responsibilities. The third section contains the MOH guidance for managing health center accounting procedures and records. The fourth section contains instructions for procurement of drugs, contraceptives, vaccines, and supplies for laboratory and dental services.