Rapid Health Facility
Assessment
The Rapid Health Facility Assessment is designed to quickly assess the overall status of service delivery at a health
facility. It contains sections related to facility management, guidelines, pharmaceutical supply chain, referrals, HMIS,
finances, public health, personnel, infrastructure, equipment, holistic care, and community input.
The assessment should be completed by the local partner in collaboration with an assessment team from Medical Teams
International, when possible. The tool should be conducted with a cross section of key informants to corroborate the
information gathered. Note: this checklist draws on and cross-links with other existing assessment tools in the IP Manual;
please refer to the Project Cycle Toolkit for details.
Date of interview:
Name of interviewer:
Name and location of facility:
Individuals interviewed:
Setting
Rural/urban
Top 5 diseases at the facility: Adults
Children
Type of facility
Management
Who operates the facility? Is there any community involvement (committee)?
Does the facility collaborate with any other health providers in the area?
Guidelines/Protocols
Does the staff use clinical guidelines or protocols?
(For example: Immunization, Family planning, Integrated Management of Childhood Illness, Managing children with diarrhea,
Managing children with fever, Referral of OB emergencies)
Pharmaceutical management
Does the facility have a list of essential drugs?
Where do the drugs come from?
Are medications brought by teams integrated with the facility pharmacy or kept separately?
For the top 5 drugs prescribed at this facility, how many days (or %) in the last 3 months were they unavailable?
Does the facility keep IV fluids and administration sets in stock? (Verify in stock now).
Where do most patients in the area obtain their medications?
Referrals
What mechanisms does the health facility staff use to refer patients to other health facilities?
(For example, Referral notes (from a lower to a higher level), Referral feedback reports (back to lower level), Emergency evacuation,
Communication system, Exemption from payment on showing referral note)
MTI Rapid Health Facility Assessment
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Health Management Information System
Does the facility have a medical records system for charting on individual patients?
Does the facility collect aggregate information about patients?
Does the facility submit health statistics reports to the MSPP?
Financial
What is the funding breakdown for this facility? (% government, NGO, etc)
Does the facility charge fees for services or drugs?
What mechanism is used to determine who is exempt from payment?
Public Health Activities
What public health activities are implemented at or from this facility?
Implemented?
If not, referral system or
collaboration?
1. Health education
2. Immunizations (DTP,
polio, measles, BCG,
Hib, Hep B, tetanus)
3. Family planning
4. Antenatal care
5. Assisted deliveries
6. Postnatal care
7. Community health
outreach
8. Treatment of severe
malnutrition
9. Treatment of HIV
10. DOTS for TB
Personnel
How is the facility staffed when volunteers are present and when they are not?
Infrastructure/Equipment
Are the following physical conditions adequate for providing services:
Yes
Lighting
Sanitation
Water
Ventilation
Cleanliness
Space
Infrastructure
Medical equipment
Disposal containers for medical
waste
Comments:
No
MTI Rapid Health Facility Assessment
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Holistic
Are facility staff involved in other areas caring for the whole person, such as domestic violence, child abuse, alcohol/drug
abuse, psychosocial counseling, or care for the environment?
Does the facility provide care for the spiritual needs of patients?
Questions to community members (if available)
What are the 3 most important diseases (for children and for adults) in the communities that use this facility?
Are there any community groups in the areas that operate out of this facility (village health committees, community
outreach organizations, women’s groups)?
List three things the facility does that are most helpful to the community.
List three health issues in which the facility could do more than they are doing now.
MTI Rapid Health Facility Assessment
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