Nepal

Program, WHO’s Service Availability and Readiness Assessment, UNFPA’s Facility Assessment for
Reproductive Health Commodities and Services, and the Nepal-specific Service Tracking Survey. 2
The UK Department for International Development (DFID) provided funding for the local costs of
the 2015 NHFS through the Nepal Health Sector Support Program (NHSSP). New ERA, a private research
firm, implemented the survey with technical assistance from ICF International’s DHS Program. USAID
provided financial support for the DHS Program’s technical assistance.
2.2.2 Objectives of the 2015 NHFS
The main objectives of the 2015 NHFS were to:
Assess the availability of basic and essential services in Nepal health facilities, including
maternal and newborn care and child health, family planning, and reproductive health services,
as well as services for NCDs and certain infectious diseases (HIV/AIDS, STIs, malaria,
and TB).
Assess the preparedness of health facilities in Nepal to provide quality services.
Provide a comprehensive body of information on the performance of different types of health
facilities that provide these essential services.
Identify gaps in the support services, resources, and processes used to provide health services
that may limit the ability of facilities to provide quality services.
Describe the processes followed in the provision of essential health care services and the extent
to which accepted standards for quality service provision are met.
Identify differences in service readiness among ecological regions, facility types, and managing
authorities and in the 14 earthquake-affected districts.
Provide a baseline assessment for tracking future progress.
2.3 DATA COLLECTION METHODS
The 2015 NHFS used five main types of data collection tools:
Facility Inventory Questionnaire.
Health Provider Questionnaire.
Observation protocols for antenatal care (ANC), family planning (FP), and services for sick
children (SC).
Exit Interview Questionnaires for ANC and family planning clients and for caretakers of sick
children whose consultations were observed. Also, postpartum clients were interviewed as they
were discharged from facilities; these interviews took place only in facilities that offered
delivery services. Unlike antenatal care, family planning, and curative care for sick children,
the survey did not involve observations of delivery services.
2
Implemented with support from the Nepal Health Sector Support Program (NHSSP), a technical assistance program
funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) that supports the MoH in
implementing the second Nepal Health Sector Program (NHSP-II).
14 • Methodology