Essential Package of Health Services Task Team

Restoring and/or maintaining access to essential lifesaving services is central in all humanitarian health response strategies. Progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is based on expanding the coverage and scope of an Essential Package of Health Services (EHPS), with sustainable financing, including specific attention for the most vulnerable, and leaving no-one behind.

While standards can be set when designing the content of an EPHS, it needs to be understood that the concept of the package is not a static one. Its content, implementation modalities and costing need to be adapted to the different contexts that often co-exist in the same country.

Taking into account that key features of crises and available resources often change over time, any guidance for EPHS should be flexible and revisited to adapt to the changes. The Global Health Cluster Task Team on Essential Package of Health Services has developed a working paper that proposes a six step process to develop, implement, and monitor an EPHS in such settings.

Programming in Access-Constrained Environments (PACE) Task Team

Through collective action, grounded in humanitarian norms, and more efficient and effective coordination, the Health Cluster aims to increase access to essential health services, increase the lifesaving impact of humanitarian assistance, and achieve better health outcomes.

Increasingly, crisis-affected populations are hard to reach, due to access and security constraints in complex conflict environments. The lack of unhindered access to communities with high humanitarian needs can prevent aid agencies from applying their standard operating model (“direct operation”). Consequently, alternative modes of operation must be employed.

This document provides practical, step-by-step guidance to health actors involved in programming in access-constrained environments. It covers all phases, from inception through programme design, operation, and programme closure or return to direct management.

The operational framework for Programming in Access-Constrained Environments (the PACE framework) provides a visual overview of the steps involved in making the decision to begin remote operation, and planning, implementing and concluding the programme. The guidance document is organized to follow the steps given in the framework, and will provide instruction on each phase, along with examples drawn from actual situations, tools and references, and helpful tips.

The guidance here is not necessarily meant to be read from beginning to end; individual sections can be consulted for guidance on specific issues.