Staff perceptions after the re-organisation of OCBA’s Medical Network

a qualitative evaluation

According to the Terms of Reference (ToR), this is a formative evaluation that will mainly serve to reinforce learning purposes andinform strategic decision-making processes of MSF OCBA’s management.

The Overall Objective, as outlined in the ToR is: “to assess to what extent the 2020 reorganisation of the Medical Network (from hereinafter called Network) has improved initial reasonsfor change (individual and collective needs of the medical network), if it has enabled more efficient collaboration and strategic sparring between OCBA departments and Regional Units, and how it is responding to patients and communities medical-humanitarian needs in MSF field operations”.

Three specific objectives were also defined in the ToR. Of these, and because there has not been enough time of implementation of the new Network model, only the first evaluation objective willbe the focus of this evaluation: “To determine the actual level of implementation and the performance of the new structure, strengths, and weaknesses.”

During the evaluation’s inception phase, the evaluation team identified some key outstanding issues and challenges of the Networksetup. These were used to frame the overall methodology and to create an Evaluation Matrix focused on four main areas of research and analysis. These included the identification of factors affecting implementation, good practices, lessons learned and recommendations. When feasible, the evaluators compared these findings with the previous setup of the Medical Department. The challenges were organised in three categories:

1.Strategic vision and Planning of the Network

2.Managerial capacity –internal management (intra-network) at three levels: the Coordination Management Team (CMT), the three Units and the Referents’ individual level

3.Improvement of working conditions, management of workload, reduction of stress and burnout, streamlining communication and decision making

Document Author(s)
Luis Villa and Ofelia García
Managed by the Vienna Evaluation Unit
Publication date
30.07.2022