Primary health care offers a cost–effective route to achieving universal health coverage (UHC). However, primary health-care systems are weak in many low- and middle-income countries and often fail to provide comprehensive, people-centred, integrated care. We analysed the primar...y health-care systems in 20 low- and middle-income countries using a semi-grounded approach. Options for strengthening primary health-care systems were identified by thematic content analysis. We found that: (i)despite the growing burden of noncommunicable disease, many low- and middle-income countries lacked funds for preventive services; (ii)community health workers were often under-resourced, poorly supported and lacked training; (iii)out-of-pocket expenditure exceeded 40% of total health expenditure in half the countries studied, which affected equity; and (iv)health insurance schemes were hampered by the fragmentation of public and private systems, underfunding, corruption and poor engagement of informal workers. In 14 countries, the private sector was largely unregulated. Moreover, community engagement in primary health care was weak in countries where services were largely privatized. In some countries, decentralization led to the fragmentation of primary health care. Performance improved when financial incentives were linked to regulation and quality improvement, and community involvement was strong. Policy-making should be supported by adequate resources for primary health-care implementation and government spending on primary health care should be increased by at least 1% of gross domestic product. Devising equity-enhancing financing schemes and improving the accountability of primary health-care management is also needed. Support from primary health-care systems is critical for progress towards UHC in the decade to 2030.
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Research Article
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0189770 January 2, 2018
Learning from earthquake relief and recovery operations
Democratic dispensation in 1994 created a political and social platform that reshaped life in South Africa. There was a surge in common belief that the inequity and wrong of Apartheid should and could be rectified. Equity of access to water and sanitation were obvious targets for improvement. In 199...4, an estimated 14–15 million South Africans were without access to an improved water supply, while close to 21 million - more than half of the population at that time - did not have access to improved sanitation facilities. These problems were most severe in poorer rural areas. The water and sanitation sector became unified by the vision of universal access for all South Africans. This case study documents the progression of the sector between 1994 and 2016, and analyzes the impact of local systems created in South Africa to respond to the water and sanitation challenge.
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Guiding framework for development cooperation, Working paper 2017.
This document was drawn up on the basis of expert publications and inputs from partners in the
GIZ regional programme Psychosocial Support for Syrian and Iraqi Refugees and Internally
Displaced People1 in order to serve as guidanc...e in the design, implementation and assessment of
psychosocial support measures for refugees in the context of the crises in Syria and Iraq. It is
aimed at actors from the MHPSS sector working with refugees in the Middle East and at ministries
and academic/scientific institutions in the context of the Syria and Iraq crises.
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African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine
ISSN: (Online) 2071-2936, (Print) 2071-2928
A Cost-Efficiency Analysis for the Kyrgyz Republi
The following technical report outlines the rationale, process and results of a joint research study, coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), co-chaired by the Ministry of Health and Social Protection and the Ministry of Environment and Sus...tainable Development in collaboration with the Climate and Climate Air Coalition, the Stockholm Environment Institute, the Clean Air Institute and leading international and national experts. A rationale section describes the links between greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, short-lived climate pollutants, air pollution and adverse health outcomes. A summary of the research study describes how scenarios were modelled to examine the health and economic implications of raising ambition in Colombia’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
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Policy and Legal Opportunities for HIV Testing Services and Civil Society Engagement
The information in this report is up-to-date as of June 2016.
The report, which follows a field visit to the country between 28 May and 6 June, also emphasises the need for international organisations to be mindful of the long present efforts of Greek lawyers and NGOs in the field, and recommends... that new initiatives should be targeted and sustainable.
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Program for Early Recovery and Resilience Building from EVD Outbreak in Liberia
You can download the report in Englisch and French. Summaries available in Arabic, Amharic, Dari, Tigrinya, Pashto
Over the past 50 years, dengue has spread from nine to over a hundred countries, making it the most rapidly spreading vector-borne disease. Yet, dengue continues to have a low profile among policy-makers and donors and does not receive the media attention it deserves. While there is no vaccine or cu...re for dengue, it can be managed and prevented. We need a renewed commitment to integrated programming that includes improved management and diagnosis, increased awareness and community participation in controlling the vector and enhanced environmental sanitation
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The Haiti Earthquake and Cholera Emergency appeal (MDRHT018) was implemented by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in collaboration with the Haitian Red Cross Society (HRCS) following the devastating earthquake on 14 August 2021, and the cholera outbreak on 2... October 2022.
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