Nakuru County Dominates USAID Tujenge Jamii Awards, Winning Nine Out of 13 CQI Trophies

Written by Ruth Magak

Nakuru County has once again proven its leadership in healthcare delivery, securing nine out of the 13 awards in the prestigious USAID Tujenge Jamii Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Awards. The fete highlights the county’s relentless efforts to improve HIV care and treatment services across its healthcare facilities.

The award ceremony was held during a two-day forum recognizing 45 healthcare facilities in Nakuru County that have excelled in implementing CQI initiatives to improve service delivery. The CQI program, which has been running since 2020, enables healthcare workers to review their performance data, identify gaps, and apply targeted interventions to address these challenges.

This continuous monitoring and improvement process ensures that healthcare services become more effective and efficient, ultimately improving patient outcomes.

CQI is a structured system used by healthcare providers to evaluate their services, identify areas that require improvement, and implement strategies to enhance service delivery. It involves data-driven decision-making, where healthcare teams analyze their performance, conduct root cause analyses, and implement solutions aimed at addressing the identified challenges.

This system allows facilities to track their progress, ensuring that interventions are effective and sustainable over time.

Nakuru County Coordinator for the HIV Program, Rachel Kiuna explained the significance of this approach, stating, “Continuous Quality Improvement is all about finding where we’re falling short and implementing real, data-based solutions to improve healthcare services. This approach empowers our teams at the facility level to take ownership of service delivery improvements, making a direct impact on the care patients receive.”

Nakuru County’s Success in CQI
The success of Nakuru County in the USAID Tujenge Jamii CQI Awards is attributed to the county’s commitment to excellence in healthcare service delivery. The awards recognized the work done across various thematic areas, including HIV care and treatment, HIV testing and prevention, TB services, and monitoring and evaluation.

One of the standout achievements was in HIV Testing Services (HTS) prevention, particularly for adolescent girls and young women, where Nakuru surpassed its targets.

The county also excelled in TB care, with 24 projects dedicated to improving TB case identification, screening, and linkage to treatment.

Mary Owino of USAID Tujenge Jamii, who champions the pediatric and adolescent components of care, praised Nakuru County for its outstanding performance. “Nakuru County has been a fast adapter of CQI activities, ranking highest in the number of facilities participating and improving across key performance indicators. Nakuru’s approach to continuous improvement has transformed the quality of care, and it is now a hub for best practices,” Owino said.

The real beneficiaries of these awards are the residents of Nakuru County, particularly Wanjiku, the everyday citizen who relies on healthcare services. The improvements made through CQI have enhanced the quality of care for people living with HIV and those at risk of infection. By focusing on data-driven decision-making and continuous improvements, healthcare facilities in Nakuru are ensuring that patients receive better, more efficient care.

Kiuna emphasized this impact, stating, “Our success is not just in winning these trophies, but in the lives we are transforming. Through CQI, we are addressing issues like viral suppression and TB case identification, ensuring that the recipient of care, experiences better health outcomes.”

As Nakuru County celebrates this milestone, the journey toward better healthcare does not stop here. The county plans to continue scaling up CQI initiatives, ensuring that more facilities embrace this culture of continuous improvement.

There is also a strong focus on knowledge sharing, with plans to establish forums where best practices can be exchanged across counties and healthcare providers.

Ms Owino echoed this sentiment, encouraging more counties to adopt CQI as a standard practice. “The culture of continuous quality improvement is not just about improving services; it’s about creating a healthcare system that learns, adapts, and grows. Nakuru is a shining example of what can be achieved, and we hope other counties will follow suit,” she said.

Nakuru winning nine out of 13 awards is no small feat, and it underscores the county’s commitment to delivering high-quality healthcare services to its residents.

As Nakuru continues to lead the way in healthcare innovation, the future looks bright for its communities, with better health outcomes and improved quality of life on the horizon.