E8-7242. Agency Information Collection Request: 60-Day Public Comment Request

AGENCY:

Office of the Secretary, HHS.

In compliance with the requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Secretary (OS), Department of Health and Human Services, is publishing the following summary of a proposed collection for public comment. Interested persons are invited to send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including any of the following subjects: (1) The necessity and utility of the proposed information collection for the proper performance of the agency's functions; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology to minimize the information collection burden.

To obtain copies of the supporting statement and any related forms for the proposed paperwork collections referenced above, e-mail your request, including your address, phone number, OMB number, and OS document identifier, to [e-mail], or call the Reports Clearance Office at [phone]. Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collections must be directed to the OS Paperwork Clearance Officer at the above e-mail address within 60 days.

Proposed Project: Evaluation of the Afghanistan Health Initiative—OMB No. 0990-NEW-Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE).

Abstract: The Offices of Global Health Affairs (OGHA) and the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), are requesting Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for collection of information to evaluate two components of the Afghanistan Health Initiative (AHI). The Afghanistan Health Initiative is authorized by the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act of 2002 [Pub. L. 107-327 section 103(a)]. The AHI's goal is to improve maternal and child health and to reduce maternal and child mortality in Afghanistan, primarily through strengthening and updating the knowledge and skills of clinical service providers and managers at the Rabia Balkhi Hospital (RBH) in Kabul. Under the AHI, HHS has funded separate cooperative agreements with International Medical Corps (IMC) and CURE International (CURE).

The evaluation includes two approaches for data collection: (1) A set of qualitative interviews with four respondent groups (OB/GYN residents, attending physicians, midwives, and Rabia Balkhi Hospital management staff) and (2) administering a subset of the clinical Standards Based Management (SBM) assessment with two respondent groups (OB/GYN residents and midwives). Estimates of annualized reporting burden are as follows:

Estimated Annualized Burden Table

Forms	Type of respondent	Number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Average burden per response (in hours)	Total burden hours
Management Interview Guide	Management Staff	21	1	30/60	11
Clinician Interview Guide	Attending Physicians	8	1	30/60	4
Clinician Interview Guide	1st-4th Year Resident Physicians	11	1	30/60	6
Clinician Interview Guide	Midwives	15	1	30/60	8
1st Year Resident, Standards-Based Management Assessment	1st Year Resident physician staff	31	1	1.5	47
2nd Year Resident, Standards-Based Management Assessment	2nd Year Resident physician staff	8	1	1.5	12
3rd Year Resident, Standards-Based Management Assessment	3rd Year Resident physician staff	9	1	1	9
4th Year Resident, Standards-Based Management Assessment	4th Year Resident physician staff	8	1	1.5	12
Midwife, Standards-Based Management Assessment	Midwives	75	1	2	150
Total					259

Debbie Kramer,

Office of the Secretary, Paperwork Reduction Act Reports Clearance Officer.