Dr. Kate Tulenko

IntraHealth International has announced that Dr. Kate Tulenko will become acting director of the USAID-funded CapacityPlus project as of October 1. Active in more than 15 countries, CapacityPlus is USAID’s flagship global project to support human resources for health initiatives. Tulenko will transition from her current role on CapacityPlus as the deputy director for clinical services and service delivery strengthening.

“We are thrilled that Dr. Tulenko is stepping into this key leadership position for IntraHealth on one of USAID’s most critical investments in addressing the global workforce crisis, and we are confident that she will bring the right mix of clinical expertise, country-based experience, and innovative solutions to advance the field of human resources for health,” said Pape Gaye, IntraHealth president and CEO.

Tulenko, who also serves as IntraHealth’s senior director for health systems innovation, has worked at the highest levels of health workforce, health financing, and health policy development with institutions around the world. She has been an advisor to national governments on health policy and reform, and she has served on expert panels for the World Bank, World Health Organization, American Public Health Association, Global Health Workforce Alliance, American Hospital Association, and more. Under CapacityPlus, Tulenko has provided global leadership in the project’s partnership with PEPFAR’s Nursing Education Partnership Initiative. She has led groundbreaking work on increasing the retention and productivity of health workers and improving the management of health professional schools. 

“CapacityPlus has a unique opportunity to partner with USAID/Washington, mission offices, countries, and health workforce practitioners to work toward the goal of every person having access to qualified, motivated heath workers,” said Tulenko. “I’m delighted about leading this work—we have an opportunity to make an incredible difference.”

Tulenko has published on a wide array of topics. Her most recent book, Insourced: How Importing Jobs Impacts the Healthcare Crisis Here and Abroad, was published by Dartmouth Press in spring 2012 and highlighted in a New York Times article, “America’s Health Worker Mismatch,” this week.

Current CapacityPlus Director Maurice Middleberg will continue to serve as IntraHealth’s vice president for global policy, leading the organization’s efforts to promote the role of the health worker as critical in saving lives and to advocate for strategies and resources to ensure that health workers are present, ready, connected, and safe around the world.