Designup

Category: Primary Healthcare

  • Primary Health Care Strengthening Project in Azerbaijan

    Primary Health Care Strengthening Project was implemented during the period of September 2005- September 2007 by a consortium of organizations led by International Medical Corps (IMC) in cooperation with Abt Associates Inc., Curatio International Foundation, and the John Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Communication Programs. The PHC Strengthening Project provided technical assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan (GoAZ) in a collaborative effort to strengthen the country’s primary healthcare system.

    The project consisted of four components:

    Creating a policy and legal framework that defines primary healthcare and the primary health delivery system;
    Increasing public expenditures for the improved health allocation for primary healthcare;
    Improving quality of primary healthcare services;
    Promoting the idea of personal responsibility for one’s health among individuals and families.
    The general objectives of the project were:

    Establishing current referral and utilization patterns for the most common health conditions in the population;
    Estimating household health expenditures to adjust the findings of quarterly Household Budget Survey (HBS) that was implemented by the State Committee on Statistics (SCS);
    Obtaining baseline and impact indicators to monitor and evaluate reforms implemented in PHC (in pilot regions) and in Health Care Financing;
    Developing instruments and obtaining primary data (at least for one pilot district) for mapping health utilization and elaborating health system Master Plan in pilot districts;
    Providing Government of Azerbaijan with the critical information about population’s self-reported health status and health care utilization, with the purpose of helping the government to formulate or adjust state policies.
    The Project concentrated on assisting the GoAZ in the development of major changes in nationwide health policy and financing. Simultaneously, the Project tested critical interventions at the level of individual facilities and communities in selected districts that served as pilot demonstration sites. The Project activities, both on national and district levels, were closely coordinated with the World Bank Project in Health Sector (Health II). Agreement was reached on focusing the Project’s pilot efforts to demonstrate the new PHC financing and organizational models in those pilot districts that were targeted by the World Bank Project. The latter envisions the rationalization of health infrastructure and optimization of human resources in pilot districts as a necessary precondition for significant investments required for modernizing health care delivery system in these districts. Respectively, the Baseline Study envisioned under the Project served as (a) baseline for anticipated World Bank Project interventions and (b) primary data source for health care delivery system rationalization planning (master planning) exercise.

  • Community Based Health Insurance

    Community Based Health Insurance Project was funded by Japan Social Development Fund (JSDF) and was implemented by Curatio International Foundation (CIF) during the period of September 2003 – September 2007. The objective of the project was to test the feasibility and effectiveness of community based health insurance (CBHI) schemes implemented by the selected communities in Georgia.

    More specifically, the project aimed to:

    Improve access to health services and provide financial protection for poor and vulnerable groups through increased community participation;
    Replicate seven pilot (CBHI) schemes implemented in Western Georgia in at least thirty six (36) other communities in Eastern and Western Georgia;
    Link the micro schemes (micro-insurance) that increase the size of the risk pool and generate economics of scale with management of the insurance schemes.
    This grant complemented the Development Credit Agreement (Credit Number 3702 GE) of the Primary Health Care Development Project dated November 8, 2002 between Georgia and IDA and facilitated the implementation of the Primary Health Care Development Project.

  • Georgia Primary Health Care Development Project, 2000-2003

    The project was funded by UK Department for International Development (DFID) and implemented by Institute for Health Sector Development (IHSD) in partnership with London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Curatio International Foundation (CIF), National Health Management Center (NHMC), and the World Health Organization (WHO). The project began in March 2000 and was completed in 2003.

    This project was designed to strengthen the ability of the public health system in Georgia to respond to widespread poverty in the country through development of primary health care based on family medicine and community health model. The project formed the basis for introduction of an accessible, effective, and sustainable primary care system for Georgia, a priority for the Government of Georgia (GoG). The project also intended to develop financing systems and models of community participation to improve access to the primary care services and essential drugs for the population and, in particular, for the poor. The Project supported the GoG initiatives in the sector.

    This DFID project was designed as precursor to the World Bank’s forthcoming Health Project in primary care. It had been designed in close collaboration with the Georgian Ministry of Labor, Health, and Social Affairs (MoLHSA) and World Bank representatives. The project’s purpose was to help the GoG to develop and implement a sustainable new model of primary health care through family medicine to improve the quality, access, and participation for persons at all levels of income. This would contribute to the project goal, which was to improve the health status of the low-income population of Georgia.

    The Project provided technical assistance and knowledge to the GoG, the MoLHSA and Tbilisi Municipality Health Department on how to implement the new models, train human resources, and undertake economic and social assessments and evaluations to incorporate these experiences to the national health system development process. Key beneficiaries were the people of Georgia who used, or were expected to use, the primary care services, but are currently unable to access them due to the existing financial barriers.

    DFID began to support primary health care development in Georgia in 1997. The two-year project (which ended in August 1999) worked with the National Health Management Center (NHMC) in Tbilisi to develop the capacity of the country to train Family Medicine Specialists (FM). The end of project review in July 1999 concluded that the project was successful. Key achievements of the project included:

    Establishment of the capacity of NHMC to train FM physicians;
    Establishment of FM as a legally recognized specialty;
    Development of training materials and curriculum for training FM physicians;
    Establishment of a licensing and accreditation system for FM training and for FM physicians.
    The Project helped to develop PHC through FM by implementing a new model of financing and provision in the four FM demonstration sites, evaluating the experience and the financial sustainability to enable a national roll out of the model through the World Bank second health project.

    The Project worked closely with the World Bank to ensure a comprehensive and a holistic approach to exploring options for financing health system. Other inputs included further training, development, and strengthening of PHC team through establishment of the national FM training center in Tbilisi and regional centers in Imereti and Kartli. These regions were selected following discussions with the GoG and assessment of poverty levels in particular regions. Additionally, factors such as the presence of related DFID projects (such as good governance projects) and complementary donor activities (MSF, USAID) were taken into account.

    The project drew on lessons of best practice from DFID primary care projects in Georgia, Albania, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Russia.

    The implementation was managed by a UK-based agency Institute for Health Sector Development (IHSD). In addition, there was an in-country implementation committee to steer the Project. This consisted of high-level representatives from the MoLHSA, Ministry of Finance, NHMC, TMHD, Georgian Association of FM, and Georgian Association of Nursing.

  • Assessment of the Health care System in Georgia.

    Since the restoration of independence, Georgia has initiated quite a number of reforms. Some have been quite successful. The majority, though, have created an additional burden on the population. There are number of conditions that determine the success of these reforms. The most important could be the desire to change. Both the government and the population must feel the need change. The document looks at health system before and after 1991. Describes legal base and its concept, organization and financing. It also shares customers’ perspectives on healthcare services and suggests recommendations. Authors of the report: David Gzirishvili, George Mataradze.

    View the full version of the document.