March 9, 2010, Washington, DC—North Carolina-based nonprofit IntraHealth International opened its first permanently-staffed office in Washington, DC, this week.  The office serves several corporate and programmatic functions, housing senior leaders of CapacityPlus, a flagship project for addressing the health workforce crisis, as well as the organization’s new Global Policy Division.

IntraHealth established its DC office to house senior leaders of CapacityPlus. Funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and led by IntraHealth, CapacityPlus is a five-year, $300 million initiative—the largest project of its kind—dedicated to strengthening the human resources needed to implement quality health programs in developing countries around the world.  IntraHealth’s partners on CapacityPlus are Abt Associates, IMA World Health, Liverpool Associates in Tropical Health and Training Resources Group, Inc.

The office also houses IntraHealth’s new division for global policy. Launched in 2009, it will advocate for evidence-based health policy supporting practices that improve provision of care to vulnerable populations.  IntraHealth will focus on policies involving the health workforce, as shortages of qualified workers hold countries back from achieving several Millennium Development Goals and “universal access” targets.

“Leaders from around the world have committed their countries to achieving sustained improvements in global health, as can be seen in the G8 meeting in Italy and President Obama’s Global Health Initiative.  This means the poor must have access to qualified health workers,” says Maurice Middleberg, vice president for global policy and director of CapacityPlus.

In addition to Middleberg, IntraHealth’s DC-based team includes: Kate Tulenko, a physician and global health specialist, who joined IntraHealth from the World Bank, as deputy director of CapacityPlus; Sara Pacque-Margolis, director of monitoring and evaluation for CapacityPlus,who comes to IntraHealth from the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation; Bob Steiner, senior financial manager for CapacityPlus; and IntraHealth’s director of program development, Krisila Benson, previously with the Center for American Progress.

The office is located at 1776 Eye Street, NW, across from the Farragut West metro station, within walking distance of USAID, the World Bank and key partner organizations.

IntraHealth International is a global health nonprofit that champions the critical role of health workers in health and development. For over 30 years, IntraHealth has empowered health workers to better serve communities in need, fostering local solutions to health care challenges by improving health worker performance, strengthening health systems, harnessing technology, and leveraging partnerships. The nonprofit’s work is supported and funded by the US Agency for International Development, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, private foundations, corporations and individuals.

Contact: Laura Hoemeke
IntraHealth International
+1 919-360-7799