Jordan

Initiatives’ staff supporting the Jordan Health Systems Strengthening II Project:

Maram Al-Karkatli, B.S., RN, M.S. Quality Improvement Task Manager

Ms. Al-Karkatli has primary responsibility for the accreditation collaborative including training counterparts, designing learning materials, monitoring progress and liaising with the Jordan Ministry of Health. 

Ms. Al-Karkatli holds a Masters degree in health service management as well as a Bachelor of Science in nursing. She has served various health care facilities specializing in performance improvement and monitoring as well as quality management and training.  

Ibrahim Aqel, MSc., Ph.D., Senior Task Manager; Management

As the Senior Task Manager for HSS II, Dr. Ibrahim Aqel is leading project efforts in building management capacity for higher and middle management at the Ministry of Health. The goal is to develop and institutionalize operational planning and supportive supervision systems at the health directorate level to enhance service delivery at the primary health care level. Dr. Aqel is developing tools for planning and supervision, conducting trainings, monitoring the progress of the health directorates and guiding health centers to comply with management and leadership standards.

Dr. Aqel has experience in management in the pharmaceuticals industry and medical supplies field, and has worked as a management consultant and trainer. He holds an undergraduate nursing degree and a B.S. in engineering, as well as a Masters degree in management/marketing, and a Ph.D. in management.

Nisreen Salameh Gamouh, RN, B.S.C., Technical Field Coordinator

As a Technical Field Coordinator for HSS II, Ms. Gamouh provides technical support to the full range of PHC interventions managed by the HSS II project’s Team Leaders and Task Managers. Ms. Gamouh also assists in strengthening the capacity of PHC (primary health care) service providers on implementing PHC clinical guidelines.

With almost a decade experience working with and in health centers Ms. Gamouh brings her knowledge and expertise to the HSS project. Prior to joining the Initiatives teams, Ms. Gamouh worked at various health centers conducting capacity building, training supervision and field visits. Ms. Gamouh is trained as a Midwife and Registered Nurse.

Safa Halaseh, B.S., Health Promotion Expert

Ms. Halaseh has been with Initiatives since 2004, providing short- and long-term consultancies on a variety of projects in Jordan, most recently serving as Project Manager for the Jordan Human Resources Project. As the Program Manager for the Health Systems Strengthening Project, Ms. Halaseh has reviewed and reported on the assessment tools for the MOH’s health promotion program.  She will continue to participate in the development of the health promotion and community health program, including assisting with development of the community-level primary health care training plan and contributing to the development of community guidelines.

Ms. Halaseh began her career as a dietician and has moved into the policy realm, focusing on youth and health promotion issues, and has published several papers and articles.

Dr. Johan de Koning, MPH, Ph.D., PHC Quality Improvement Team Leader

As Team Leader, Dr. Johan de Koning is leading HSSII’s Quality Improvement team in designing and implementing innovative approaches to quality improvement in Ministry of Health (MOH) facilities. The team’s focus is on preparing Primary Health Care facilities for accreditation, strengthening quality improvement teams and scaling up best practices, and strengthening management practices at all levels within the Jordan health care system.

Dr. Johan de Koning is a public health expert with a special expertise in quality and safety improvement (measurement) in health care. For more the ten years, he worked in developing countries in Africa and Latin-America. During his career he held different key positions in national and international healthcare projects. As a researcher he and gained substantial knowledge and experiences in health services and quality of care research.

Osama Samawi, M.D., Senior Task Manager for Quality

Dr. Osama is the Senior Task Manager for Quality with the Jordan HSS Project.  In this role, he is responsible for planning, coordinating, and facilitating the implementation of HSS efforts to institutionalize quality and performance improvement systems to sustain a continuous quality improvement process at all levels of the Jordanian health care system.

As a board-certified physician in community and health management since 1980, Dr. Osama has experience in senior hospital management and has extensive experience as an advisor to WHO and other international agencies on quality assurance and hospital administration. He has worked in the Jordan Ministry of Health and as a lecturer in health management at the Jordan Medical Council. In addition to being fluent in Arabic and English, Dr. Osama has professional working knowledge of Russian.