Cairo – Today, more than 100 health professionals celebrated the completion of a five-year program sponsored by the U.S. and Egyptian governments to improve the performance of nurses in Egypt.  The project strengthened the management and leadership skills of 780 nurses in Upper Egypt, who in turn trained more than 1,000 additional health care professionals.  As a result of this program, infection rates decreased and clinical care realized life-saving improvements in Qena, Luxor, and Aswan.

“The improved leadership, management, and communication skills of nurses have led to measurable improvements in infection control, maternal and child health care, and service delivery,” said Dr. Mary C. Ott, USAID Mission Director in Egypt.  “USAID is honored to work with these nurses, who provide critical services every day so healthy children can spend more time in school, so healthy parents miss fewer days of work and earn more wages, and so grandparents can live longer and happier lives with their families.” 

Nurses play a central role in health service delivery, especially in remote areas where they are often the frontline providers of care.  From 2009-2014, USAID and the Ministry of Health and Population have partnered on this program to build the management and leadership skills of young women nurses. Participants have said that the training greatly improved their ability to initiate solutions to obstacles and to interact with physicians and facility managers, which has improved the quality of the services they deliver to their patients.

Over the past 30 years, the U.S. Government through USAID has worked with the Egyptian people to improve health care available to Egyptians.  USAID invested $3.6 million in this program, as a part of the $1.5 billion invested in health over the last 30 years.  In addition to improving the health and well-being of Egyptians through increasing the skills of health care workers, the American people have contributed to infrastructure projects that have provided water, electricity, and telephone services to nearly all of Egypt; education projects that have contributed to doubling the number of girls in schools; and health projects that have led to an 80 percent reduction in infant mortality.