April 1, 2022

Public Health Leadership During COVID-19

 

In November 2021, four IPPHL alumni took a moment of pause to discuss how they have been leading and sustaining themselves and their teams through the pandemic.

Panelists included Selorm Kutsoati, Ikrama Hassan, Joel Mubiligi, and Lucy Mecca and the conversation was facilitated by Nosa Orobaton.

Our four panelists discussed their challenges in response to COVID-19, including managing the changing work environment and skepticism surrounding the novel pandemic and vaccines. The group’s greatest successes included the resilience of staff and health systems, the maintenance of routine immunization services, and the mobilization of health workers.

Across the board, leadership skills have been crucial to their response, especially in uncertain and constantly evolving circumstances. The public relates better to a leader who communicates transparently, refrains from overconfidence, speaks with an honest and humanistic approach, is able to adjust their leadership style, and includes input from others.

Joel highlighted the importance of collaborative leadership in caring for geographically dispersed chronic care patients during the lockdown. His team partnered with other organizations to coordinate drug delivery to high-risk patients. This specific challenge forced his team to work effectively through uncertainty, make decisions quickly, and center the human in all of their decisions.

The pandemic highlighted the inequities both within the panelists’ health systems and globally. Dr. Kutsoati shone a light on how large cities have generally received better access and better care during COVID and more rural areas lacked funding and operational support. On an international scale, Dr. Ikrama discussed the world as a globalized village. The hoarding of vaccines and other resources by western countries and the limitations of vaccine intellectual property is resulting in the prolongation of the pandemic globally. “Whatever the rich world is doing, they are not likely to succeed in getting rid of COVID-19 until the poorest part of the world is safe.” – Dr. Ikrama Hassan

Broadly speaking, COVID has revealed what has been happening on the ground for centuries and has reinforced the need for primary health care and universal health coverage. The pandemic has also given us a window and opportunity to use the resources that we do have to change our health systems. Panelists recommended looking inward at what is already being started and practiced in Africa, such as a burgeoning vaccine development program and nurturing relationships with local health organizations.

The Public Leadership During COVID-19: Conversation with Public Health Leaders from across Africa panel was a collaboration with the International Program in Public Health Leadership (IPPHL), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Public Health Initiative at the University of Washington. Panelists included Dr. Selorm Kutsoati, Dr. Ikrama Hassan, Joel Mubiligi, and Lucy Mecca and was facilitated by Nosa Orobaton.