Department of Public Administration and Health Service Management
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Item Moonlighting in Ghana's higher education institutions: exploring lecturers' experiences at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA)(Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 2020-04-15) Sakyi, E.K.; Agomor, K.S.Purpose This paper aims to examine lecturers' experiences of moonlighting in the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was used. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 18 purposively selected informants. Data were transcribed and analyzed thematically. Findings The findings are that moonlighting is common at GIMPA, and the institutional environment is conducive for the practice. Knowledge of the practice is unclear. However, moonlighting serves as a source of additional income for lecturers, which a significant majority describe as enabling their continuing employment at GIMPA, but many pointed out the negative effects as well. Lack of a policy to control the behavior has been cited as a reason for the problem, which left lecturers to self-determine what to do. Moonlighting practice is affecting the quality of teaching and support to students by the lecturers. Research limitations/implications The sample of the respondents who participated in the study is small and limited to 18. Their views cannot be generalized to all higher education institutions. But, the results show the seriousness of the problem and its implications. Practical implications Moonlighting is prevalent in GIMPA. It suggests that employees of other public higher education institutions are no immune to it. Originality/value This study is the first of its kind to explore the practice of moonlighting in a quasi-public higher education institution in Ghana. It has added to the empirical literature on the practice and the effects on the institution.Item An e-government framework for assessing readiness for public sector e-procurement in a lower-middle income country(Information Technology for Development, 2020-05-24) Adjei-Bamfo, P.; Domfeh, K.A.; Bawole, J.N.; Ahenkan, A.; Maloreh-Nyamekye, T.; Adjei-Bamfo, S.; Darkwah, S.A.Governments globally are leveraging information and communication technology (ICT) growth towards improving the quality of public procurement services for socio-economic development. However, the extent of its application differs across nations. Notwithstanding the extant theoretical and empirical literature on IT for development, knowledge on how to assess readiness for adopting a full e-procurement system in the public sector of lower and lower-middle income countries (LMICs) begs for understanding. With the narrative of Ghana, we address this gap by drawing on the institutional and economic theory and the United Nations E-Government Development Index towards a holistic framework beyond the dyad of linear website functionalities and internet focus of prior e-government adoption models. Elite interviews gathered from multiple cases from Ghana’s public sector reveals the key readiness determinants for a full public sector e-procurement system. This study has significant implications for shaping the process-oriented management of government e-procurement projects towards socio-economic development in LMICs amid their complex institutional and socio-technical environments.Item Partnership and collaboration in healthcare delivery in Ghana(Journal of Public Affairs, 2020-05-29) Ampong-Ansah, F.B.; Maloreh-Nyamekye, T.; Otchere, L.N.; Boateng, A.K.; Antwi-Boasiako, J.The quest of most state or governments to adequately cater for the healthcare needs of its people continue to be a difficult task since many states have experienced, and continue to experience, a reduction in allocation of resources to the health sector. The involvement of the private sector in health care delivery is an option being explored by a number of states to augment resources in the health sector with some partnerships between the public and the private healthcare facilities in the fight against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. However, not many empirical studies have been conducted to identify and better understand these partnerships between the state agencies and the private sector in Ghana. This study, therefore, sought to answer questions on the range of partnership and collaborative activities existing between public and private healthcare institutions in Ghana, the need for these collaborations and the factors that hinder these collaborations in Ghana. The study adopted the stakeholder theory as various stakeholders come together to ensure the delivery of healthcare in Ghana. The study revealed that there was no direct partnership between these two groups. They, however, collaborated in some instances under the umbrella of their governing organization. The perceived need for collaboration that was identified under the study was for the protection of human lives. The study concluded that this collaboration is necessary to ensure an efficient healthcare delivery.Item An Interrogation of Administrative Processes Driving Education Reform Policies in the Secondary Education Sector in Ghana(Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2018) Maloreh-Nyamekye, T.; Nmai, O.S.N.The study focused on the challenges associated with the administrative processes in the introduction of education policies in Ghana. It was a descriptive research employing sequential mixed-methods, involving the combination of survey design and phenomenological qualitative approach. Data was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire administered in a cross-sectional survey which was followed by in-depth face-to-face interviews. The outcomes of the two methods were triangulated during the discussion. The results showed that though the education reform policies were successfully launched, they did not complete the full policy cycle owing to political interferences. Administrative set-ups for the policy execution were also short-changed. The study also found that consultation of, and among, key players is paramount to the success of any educational policy. Based on the findings, new Policy Execution Cycle and Consultation Model were designed. The implications of the study for government policymakers and researchers were highlighted.Item Linking Social Rights to Active Citizenship for the Most Vulnerable: the Role of Rights and Accountability in the ‘Making’ and ‘Shaping’ of Social Protection(The European Journal of Development Research, 2019-07-08) Abdul-Gafaru, A.; Sabates-Wheeler, R.; Wilmink, N.; De Groot, R.; Spadafora, T.Social protection has the potential to provide a key interface between states and citizens. We consider how the institutional framing and design of social protection can be adapted from top-down forms of provision to forms that stimulate vulnerable citizens to make rights-based claims and demand accountability for their entitlements. A conceptual framework is developed that illustrates three channels through which citizenship can be engaged through social accountability mechanisms and in the context of social protection provision. Drawing on case studies, we highlight the different contexts in which the design and delivery of social protection can open up spaces for different forms of citizenship engagement and expression. Through opening up institutional spaces where citizens can engage with the state, and each other, we conclude that social protection is uniquely placed to build the economic, social and political capabilities of citizens.Item The Opportunities and Constraints to Collaboration in Public Sector Management(Public Organization Review, 2019-08-22) Sakyi, E.K.; Osei-Kojo, A.; Bawole, J.N.This article synthesizes current insights about the opportunities and constraints to collaborative public management. Despite the swath of research on collaboration there has been little attempt to present the opportunities and constraints in a single article that articulates both perspectives coherently. Drawing on an extensive literature review, the main arguments are that collaboration presents opportunities to maximize scarce resources and improve public services delivery. Yet, the difficulty in evaluating the outcomes of collaboration as well as accountability and power-sharing issues remain key constraints. The article concludes that public managers need to critically ponder both perspectives in making decisions.Item Exploring clinical communication in a teaching hospital in Ghana(International Journal of Health Governance, 2019-02-18) Abor, P.A.Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the clinical communication using Tamale Teaching Hospital as a case. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on the Reassure, Explain, Listen, Answer, Take Action and Express Appreciation (RELATE) model and the Four Habits models of Clinical Communication. Findings – The results of the study indicate that leadership conducted staff meetings with some of the components of the RELATE model. These include staff meetings, employee rounding and communication/ notice boards. The results of the study also suggest that much as some parts of the Four Habits model was used in provider–patient communication, certain aspects of the model were absent. The study identified some communication challenges including poor dissemination, lack of unity among some health workers, poor attendance in meetings and, with respect to patients, language barrier, patients’ reluctance to disclose their actual health problems to health providers, lack of privacy and lack of a friendly environment. Practical implications – Providers, especially physicians, should be given training on the local languages in areas where they perform their services. Health service providers should receive as part of their learning in-depth training on the Four Habits model of Clinical Communication, especially the Medical Officers. Originality/value – It is imperative to embrace evidence-based practices/models aimed at securing proper communication in all hospitals but most especially teaching hospitals.Item Patient satisfaction with the quality of care in Ghana’s health-care institutions A disaggregated approach(International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, 2019-04-16) Abuosi, A.A.; Braimah, M.Purpose – The purpose of this study was to examine patient satisfaction with the quality of care in Ghana’s health-care facilities using a disaggregated approach. Design/methodology/approach – The study was a cross-sectional national survey. A sample of 4,079 males and females in the age group of 15-49 years were interviewed. Descriptive statistics, principal component analysis and t-tests were used in statistical analysis. Findings – About 70 per cent of patients were satisfied with the quality of care provided in health-care facilities in Ghana, whereas about 30 per cent of patients were fairly satisfied. Females and insured patients weremore likely to be satisfied with the quality of care, compared with males and uninsured patients. Research limitations/implications – Because data were obtained from a national survey, the questionnaire did not include the type of facility patients attended to find out whether satisfaction with the quality of care varied by the type of health facility. Future studies may, therefore, include this. Practical implications – The study contributes to the literature on patient satisfaction with the quality of care. It highlights that long waiting time remains an intractable problem at various service delivery units of health facilities and constitutes a major source of patient dissatisfaction with the quality of care. Innovative measures must, therefore, be adopted to address the problem. Originality/value – There is a paucity of research that uses a disaggregated approach to examine patient satisfaction with the quality of care at various service delivery units of health facilities. This study is a modest contribution to this research gap.Item Talent Management and Employee Outcomes: A Psychological Contract Fulfilment Perspective(Public Organization Review, 2019) Mensah, J.K.This study examines a salient mechanism ─ psychological-contract (PC) fulfilment through which talent management (TM) practices might affect talented employees’ outcomes. Using two samples from parastatal (n = 232) and banking (n = 145) institutions in Ghana, a partial mediation model was outlined and tested using structural equation modelling. In both samples, the findings showed that TM practices had positive relationship with PC fulfilment, affective commitment and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB). Similarly, the findings showed that TM practices not only had a direct positive effect, but also an indirect effect on talented employee outcomes via PC fulfilment in both parastatal and banking institutions. The findings further suggest that, even though the results are similar, the relationships are stronger in sample two and that banking sector employees perceived more TM practices, PC fulfilment, are more committed and engage in more OCB than parastatal sector employees. The findings have important theoretical, policy and managerial implications. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.Item The Policy and Practice of Local Economic Development in Ghana(Urban Forum, 2018-09) Mensah, J.K.; Bawole, J.N.; Ahenkan, A.; Azunu, R.Local economic development (LED) has gained prominence as a feasible option to top–down development approaches that have generally been unsuccessful in generating significant and sustainable development at the local level. While LED has proven to be an attractive local development strategy, very little attention has been devoted to the policy and practice of LED in Ghana. This article fills this gap and contributes to the discussion and evidence of LED in sub-Saharan Africa. The article is the output of an examination of documentary sources on LED policies, practices and case studies in Ghana. We argue that while LED policy and practice in Ghana has been in existence for several years, local areas are still building their impetus for the initiative of their own economic development and find practical solutions that make sense in their milieu. It is crucial for local governments to develop LED actions plans, ensure effective participation of stakeholders, build in value chain and reduce politicisation. © 2018, Springer Nature B.V.