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IasiMinneapolis

Iasi, Romania / Minneapolis, Minnesota

1998-2000


Focus: Women's Health



The Partners

US Partners: Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a major public teaching and research facility. A member of the National Association of Public Hospitals, HCMC has 910 licensed beds and admits more than 21,000 patients per year. HCMC offers a full range of complete inpatient and outpatient services, including regional programs for kidney disease, rehabilitation and community outreach. As the first Level One Trauma Center in Minnesota, HCMC provides services to more than 87,000 emergency patients annually, with specialists on-duty 24 hours a day.

CEE Partners: The Center for Reproductive Health and Family Planning is located within the campus of the Elena Doamna Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The Center is located in a three-story ambulatory facility. The Center offers family planning and reproductive health services (including infertility screening) and educational programs.


Partnership Objectives

Women's Health

  • Establish a Women's Wellness Center which can serve as a replicable model for extending primary and preventive services on an outpatient basis to women throughout their life cycle.
  • Provide a team-based training program for center staff, emphasizing the Women's Wellness philosophy and approach related to the delivery of health promotion, disease prevention and primary care services for women of all ages.
  • Develop health education classes for patients and community outreach programs to promote healthy lifestyles.



Key Events

  1998
  • AIHA arranged for representatives from the Iasi Family Planning Center to travel to Chisinau, Moldova to tour the Dalila Women's Wellness Center on December 2. The staff of the WWC explained the range of services and education programs offered at the center. The visit to the WWC assisted the Iasi partners to visualize the model and plan for the establishment of a WWC in their institution.

  1999

  • On January 21, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in Iasi by representatives from Iasi, Minneapolis and AIHA, formally launching the partnership.
  • In April, a multidisciplinary team from Iasi observed several models of women's health services delivery and health promotion programs within the Hennepin County Medical Center system. Observation and participation in service delivery and educational programs provided the team with skills and ideas to incorporate into the Iasi Center.
  • On October 26, the First Lady of Romania cut the ribbon in a ceremony marking the opening of the Women's Wellness Center. There was extensive local and national media coverage.
 
  2000

  • In July, two clinicians from Minneapolis traveled to Iasi to conduct additional clinical training and worked with staff on patient flow and health education programs.
  • At USAID's request, two volunteers (Radiologist and Radiology Technicians) traveled to Iasi to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether a mammography unit could be donated to the WWC.



Achievements

Women's Health

  • As a result of the Partnership training program the following clinical and health promotion skills were enhanced:
  • Prophylactic medical examination of women of pre-, peri- and menopause periods;
  • Diagnostic and laboratory testing methodologies, interpretation, and reporting of results;
  • Patient education methodologies and community outreach programs.
  • Through the Women's Wellness Center project, the Director of the Center in Iasi was able to build local support for women's health programs and establish relationships with community leaders and business people. Over $60,500 has been contributed by local parties, including $17,000 for renovations and laboratory supplies from the Insurance House of Health, $10,000 for renovations and equipment from the Public Health Department, and $3,000 in contraceptives from the Health Ministry.
  • Through the Women's Wellness Center project, new cross-boarder relationships have been built between Iasi and neighboring Moldova. The Directors of the Iasi and Chisinau WWCs have created an information sharing and skills-building relationship to benefit the staff and patients of both WWCs.
  • Obstetricians and medical nurses have begun conducting health education programs for pregnant couples. The inclusion of fathers in the classes has been met with such great enthusiasm that the center has added a second class to accommodate demand.
  • At the new WWC, nurses have started to communicate more with patients during treatment and when solving social issues. Physicians have started to spend more time on disease prevention (e.g. cancer and STDs) with their patients.
  • Physicians and midwives have been exposed to and trained in domestic violence screening and counseling through training programs sponsored by the Dalila Women's Wellness Center. The training will allow staff at the new Iasi WWC to recognize signs of abuse and support women who are in abusive relationships.
  • The "Elena Doamna" WWC offers two types of classes: health education classes to teenagers and pregnancy classes for mothers-to-be.
  • The WWC has engaged in outreach activities by meeting with GP's from other regions (Constanta,Cluj,Suceava, Botosani) regarding family planning issues, and holding training sessions with doctors and nurses in rural areas in order to spread the concept of preventive medicine as it relates to women's health in particular.
  • During the 2000 fiscal year, the WWC documented 18,845 visits. These visits included services for pre-natal care, gynecological examinations including diagnostic test, contraceptives, and health education classes.
  • During the first quarter of 2001, the WWC documented 3,445 visits by 2,582 patients.



Partnership Data

Dates of MOU Signing: January 21, 1999  
Exchanges: CEE Partner Exchanges

10
  CEE Partner Exchange Days

166
  US Partner Exchanges

6
  US Partner Exchange Days

69
  Total Exchanges

16
  Total Exchange Days

235
Estimated Value of In-Kind Contributions:    
Medical Equipment and Supplies, Educational Materials

1,000
  Food and Lodging

159
  Human Resources

222,637
  Total

$223,796

 

 


Participating Institutions




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