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Improving Quality: A Healthcare Revolution in Somaliland
Over the last 20 years, healthcare improvement work has focussed on improving access to health services globally. Whilst this has led to improvements in health outcomes, poor quality healthcare still causes millions of unnecessary deaths each year.
In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), five million people die each year due to poor quality care, compared to 3.6 million deaths caused by lack of access.1
King’s health partnership with Somaliland
Improving the quality of healthcare is a priority for the Government of Somaliland. For more than 25 years, King’s Global Health Partnerships (KGHP) has worked side by side with partners in Somaliland—transforming medical education, improving hospital safety, and supporting the development of national health policies that put patients first.
Over the past 2 years, KGHP has worked with the Ministry of Health Development (MOHD) to lay the foundations needed to transform the quality of the healthcare system, serving a population of 4.2 million people.
Watch a short film on the achievements of the 2-year, National Quality Improvement Programme
Delivery of a national quality of healthcare policy and strategy
In collaboration with Qatar Charity, MoHD, World Health Organisation (WHO) and Global Health Partnerships (formerly THET), King’s helped the Somaliland government to develop a national quality of care policy and strategy – a five-year roadmap to improve the quality of care across the health system.
Crucially, the policy was informed by the voices of 2,500 people across Somaliland, who were surveyed about their experiences of healthcare and their confidence in the system. This marked the first time public opinion has directly shaped national health policy in Somaliland – a milestone with the potential to transform how services are designed and delivered.
Improving quality of care in six regional hospitals
The programme also worked with the country’s six regional hospitals to ensure they met international standards for infection prevention and control (IPC). Hospital leaders and staff were trained in IPC protocols and practices, and Patient Safety and IPC Committees have been established in all six hospitals to lead and oversee improvement to quality and IPC action plans. National infection prevention and control guidelines were developed, creating a roadmap for safe care across the entire health system. With philanthropic support, we procured essential equipment and supplies, from sterilising machines to waste management systems, so hospitals can meet the new safety standards.
These changes mean hospitals are safer for patients, staff, and families alike—and the systems put in place will enable long-term progress.
Strengthening undergraduate and postgraduate medical education
Finally, the programme assisted medical schools across the country to transition to a new undergraduate curriculum for medicine. For the first time, all doctors entering the health system should now study a standard set of subjects that is tailored to the country’s needs and meets international standards.
In parallel, MoHD and Global Health Partnerships (formerly THET) drafted a health workforce plan which lays out the number and type of specialist doctors needed to provide quality care in Somaliland. And we developed a draft model for how postgraduate medical education should be governed – laying the foundation for a new generation of specialists who will shape the future of healthcare in Somaliland.
