Constraints to applying systems thinking concepts in health systems: A regional perspective from surveying stakeholders in Eastern Mediterranean countries.

Background: Systems Thinking (ST) has recently been promoted as an important approach to health systems strengthening. However, ST is not common practice, particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). This paper seeks to explore the barriers that may hinder its application in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) and possible strategies to mitigate them.

The impact of accreditation of primary healthcare centers: successes, challenges and policy implications as perceived by healthcare providers and directors in Lebanon.

Background: In 2009, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) launched the Primary Healthcare (PHC) accreditation program to improve quality across the continuum of care. The MOPH, with the support of Accreditation Canada, conducted the accreditation survey in 25 PHC centers in 2012. This paper aims to gain a better understanding of the impact of accreditation on quality of care as perceived by PHC staff members and directors; how accreditation affected staff and patient satisfaction; key enablers, challenges and strategies to improve implementation of accreditation in PHC.

A national study on nurses' retention in healthcare facilities in underserved areas in Lebanon.

Background: Nursing shortages and maldistribution are priority issues for healthcare systems around the globe. Such imbalances are often aggravated in underserved areas, especially in developing countries. Despite the centrality of this issue, there is a dearth of studies that examine the retention of nurses in underserved areas in the Middle East Region.

Improving primary healthcare through accreditation: baseline assessment of readiness and challenges in Lebanese context.

The quality of primary healthcare (PHC) has become of high importance. In 2009, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health launched the PHC accreditation program to expand and improve quality across the continuum of care. This study will explore the readiness of PHC centers in Lebanon to implement the newly developed accreditation standards including challenges and required actions/strategies.

Integrating patient safety standards into the accreditation program: a qualitative study to assess the readiness of Lebanese hospitals to implement into routine practice.

Introduction: Concerns about quality of care have led to the integration of patient safety standards and goals in national and international accreditation programs. Since 2005, two national hospital accreditation surveys have been conducted in Lebanon. In 2010, the Ministry of Health integrated patient safety standards into the current program.

A multi-faceted approach to promote knowledge translation platforms in eastern Mediterranean countries: climate for evidence-informed policy.

Objectives: Limited work has been done to promote knowledge translation (KT) in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR). The objectives of this study are to: 1.assess the climate for evidence use in policy; 2.

Health Policy and Systems Research in Twelve Eastern Mediterranean Countries: a stocktaking of production and gaps (2000-2008).

Background: The objectives of this study are to: (1) profile the production of Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR) published between 2000 and 2008 in 12 countries in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR): Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen; (2) identify gaps; and (3) assess the extent to which existing HPSR produced in the region addresses regional priorities pertaining to Health Financing, Human Resources for Health and the Role of the Non-State Sector. This is the first stocktaking paper of HPSR production and gaps in the EMR.

Methods: Articles indexed on Medline between years 2000 and 2008 for the 12 study countries were selected.

Predictors and outcomes of patient safety culture in hospitals.

Background: Developing a patient safety culture was one of the recommendations made by the Institute of Medicine to assist hospitals in improving patient safety. In recent years, a multitude of evidence, mostly originating from developed countries, has been published on patient safety culture. One of the first efforts to assess the culture of safety in the Eastern Mediterranean Region was by El-Jardali et al.

The current state of patient safety culture in Lebanese hospitals: a study at baseline.

Objective: The objective of this study is to conduct a baseline assessment of patient safety culture in Lebanese hospitals.

Design: The study adopted a cross-sectional research design and utilized the hospital survey on patient safety culture (HSOPSC).

Setting: Sixty-eight Lebanese hospitals participated in the study (54% of all hospitals).