Remarks by Dr. John Eyres, Director, Office of Public Health and Education, USAID/Cambodia Implementing the Cambodian Hospital Accreditation Standards (CHAS)

• Your Excellency, Professor Yit Sunnara, Secretary of State and Chairman of the Quality Improvement Working Group of the Ministry of Health
• Dr. Sok Srun, Director, Department of Hospital Services, Ministry of Health 
• Dr. Ly Nareth, Representative, Senior Health Specialist and Co-Task Team Leader, Health Equity and Quality Improvement Project 2 
• Dr. Suos Premprey, Deputy Chief of Party, USAID-EQHA project.
• Hospital directors and Quality Assurance Coordinators
• Quality Assurance Office, World Bank and Enhancing Quality of Healthcare Activity team members

Chum reap sour!  It is a great honor to join you today as we discuss the application of the accreditation standards at health facilities to improve health service quality and safety.  Through the Enhancing Quality of Healthcare Activity project, USAID is proud to support this process and this workshop.  

EQHA is USAID’s five-year flagship health systems strengthening project that works through national and sub-national levels within the health system.  Focusing in Phnom Penh, Kampong Cham, Tbong Khmum, Kampong Chhnang, Battambang, and Pailin, EQHA works in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health to improve the quality of health services at public and private health facilities.  Since 2019, EQHA has provided technical assistance to the Ministry of Health with the aim of introducing a national healthcare accreditation model. 

In 2020, the Ministry and H-EQIP partners decided to use the both sets of Cambodian healthcare accreditation standards, including the Cambodian Hospital Accreditation Standards and the Cambodian Health Center Accreditation Standards, as part of the new H-EQIP-2 National Quality Enhancement and Monitoring Tool.  As part of these efforts, EQHA trained 40 assessor trainers from 25 provinces across Cambodia.  Collaborating with the Quality Assurance Office, 60 trainers were instructed on quality improvement through the National Healthcare Quality Improvement Handbook endorsed by the Ministry’s Quality Improvement Working Group meeting.

I would like to acknowledge H.E. Professor Yit Sunnara, Secretary of State, Chairman of the Ministry’s Quality Improvement Working Group for his inspirational leadership, and for being a champion of accreditation and quality improvement.   He is organizing today’s workshop to familiarize hospital directors from all 25 provinces with the Cambodian Hospital Accreditation Standards. 

I also want to congratulate the staff of the Quality Assurance Office of the Department of Hospital Servicesand the EQHA Team for your hard work and dedication to improve the quality of healthcare services in Cambodia.

Finally, I want to express our gratitude to the Ministry of Health for working with our EQHA project to create optimal systems for quality improvement for the people of Cambodia. 

Thank you!