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Category: Article

  • An Impact Evaluation of Medical Insurance for Poor in Georgia: Preliminary Results and Policy Implications

    An International peer reviewed journal Health Policy and Planning has published an article An impact evaluation of medical insurance for poor in Georgia: preliminary results and policy implications, authored by Curatio International Foundation experts.

    The authors evaluated the impact of Medical Insurance for Poor in Georgia (MIP), the Government program that delivered state-subsidized health benefits to the poorest groups of the Georgian population through contracts with private insurance companies.

    This study documented that after 3 years of the MIP implementation the program successfully managed to reduce financial access barriers for the MIP covered individuals by delivering greater financial benefits to the poorest. Although the MIP did not facilitate growth in health care utilization for all beneficiaries, positive trends were observed among capital city residents.

    The equity impact of the MIP and improved financial protection, especially for the poor, are benefits to be considered by the government for the Universal Health Coverage.

    Visit ResearchGate to read and download the article.

  • The Forbes and Skoll World Forum to discuss HIV/AIDS Epidemic with Director of CIF

    Which Region Has The Fastest-Growing HIV/AIDS Epidemic In The World?- Giorgi Gotsadze, Director of Curatio International Foundation was asked to discuss this issue with Forbes.

    The discussion precedes many health-related discussions to take place in September at the Clinton Global Initiative, the Social Good Summit, UN week and other such events.

    ‘Editor’s Note: In advance of the many health-related discussions to take place in September at the Clinton Global Initiative, the Social Good Summit, UN week and other such events, the Skoll World Forum asked some of the world’s leading voices in global health to paint a comprehensive picture of key trends, challenges and opportunities to realizing healthcare access and treatment around the world. A new piece will be posted everyday through Friday, and you can view the entire series here.

    Dr. George Gotsadze, MD, PhD, has more than 15 years of experience in health policy and systems. Since 1996, he has led Georgian think tank Curatio International Foundation, which focuses on health policy and health systems issues, primarily in the post-Soviet states.’

    See the interview on Forbes.com.

    See discussion on Skoll World Forum.

  • Article on Springer-Determinants of Risky Sexual Behavior Among Injecting Drug Users in Georgia

    Curatio International Foundation has published the article on Springer, Aids and Behavior Section. The article covers the findings of CIF’s recent study on Injection risk practices and risky sexual behaviors among injection drug users (IDUs) and their sexual partners particularly vulnerable to HIV. The purpose of the study was to describe and understand determinants of high-risk sexual behavior among IDUs in Georgia. A cross-sectional, anonymous survey assessed knowledge, behavior and HIV status in IDUs in five Georgian cities (Tbilisi, Gori, Telavi, Zugdidi, Batumi) in 2009. The study enrolled in total 1,127 (1,112 males, 15 females) IDUs. Results indicate that occasional sexual relationships are common among male IDUs, including married ones.

    Authors of the article are: Ivdity Chikovani, Ketevan Goguadze, Ivana Bozicevic, Natia Rukhadze & George Gotsadze.

    See the abstract on Springer.

  • Tobacco Use and Nicotine Dependence among Conflict-Affected Men in the Republic of Georgia

    Article published on International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ISSN 1660-4601

    by Bayard Roberts, Ivdity Chikovani, Nino Makhashvili, Vikram Patel and Martin McKee

    There is very little evidence globally on tobacco use and nicotine dependence among civilian populations affected by armed conflict, despite key vulnerability factors related to elevated mental disorders and socio-economic stressors.

    The study aim was to describe patterns of smoking and nicotine dependence among conflict-affected civilian men in the Republic of Georgia and associations with mental disorders.

    As research in populations free from conflict has shown that greater tobacco use and nicotine dependence are associated with both post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and common mental disorders such as depression, anxiety and alcohol use, it might be expected that those exposed to conflict may be more vulnerable to heightened tobacco use. Indeed, there is increasing concern over chronic diseases among conflict-affected populations, including tobacco-related diseases. Yet despite this potential vulnerability for heightened tobacco use, there are very few studies on tobacco use among conflict-affected civilian populations and they are generally characterized by small sample sizes and limited analysis, with only a few examining associations between tobacco use and mental disorders or trauma exposure. Identified papers include those addressing: smoking patterns of 989 Kurdish youth in Iraq; antismoking messages and current cigarette smoking status among 1,122 youth in Somaliland; current smoking and smoking cessation rates among 740 elderly people (including refugees) in Beirut, Lebanon; variances in smoking rates between 32 adolescent IDPs with 528 non-IDPs adolescents in Belgrade, Serbia; links between subjective threat of armed conflict and psychosocial outcomes (including cigarette smoking) among 24,935 conflict-affected Israeli and Palestinian youth; tobacco use among 194 immigrant and refugee youth in British Columbia, Canada; and smoking patterns, nicotine dependence and correlations with PTSD among 66 Bosnian refugees in a primary care setting in the United States.

    Better understanding of patterns and determinants of smoking is a first step in strengthening tobacco control, tackling tobacco use and its effects and thus of improving the long-term health of conflict-affected populations. This paper takes advantage of data collected as part of a broader study on mental health among conflict-affected populations in Georgia to examine smoking and nicotine dependence among conflict-affected civilian men in the Republic of Georgia.

    See the full article.

  • Contributing to publishing the paper: Circus monkeys or change agents? Civil society advocacy for HIV/AIDS in adverse policy environments

    Curatio International Foundation has contributed to publishing the paper that explores the factors enabling and undermining civil society efforts to advocate for policy reforms relating to HIV/AIDS and illicit drugs in three countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia: Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine. The paper was published on the world’s leading scientific papers’ source Sciencedirect.com in the rubrics: Social Science and Medicine.

    The paper looks at political contexts and explores how the civil society actors’ strengths and weaknesses inhibit or enable advocacy for policy change – issues that are not well understood in relation to specific policy areas such as HIV/AIDS, or particular regions of the world where national policies are believed to be major drivers of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The study is based on in-depth interviews with representatives of civil society organizations (CSOs) (n = 49) and national level informants including government and development partners (n = 22).

    Development partners and government tend to construct CSOs as service providers rather than advocates. While some advocacy was tolerated by governments, CSO participation in the policy process was, ultimately, perceived to be tokenistic. This was because there are financial interests in maintaining prohibitionist legislation: efforts to change punitive laws directed at the behaviors of minority groups such as injecting drug users have had limited impact.

    Read the full paper online or download PDF.

  • Paper on Prevalence of HIV among injection drug users in Georgia published on Journal of International Aids Society, 2011

    In February 15, 2011 the Journal of International Aids Society Published the paper by CIF on Prevalence of HIV among injection drug users in Georgia.

    Georgia is categorized as a low-HIV-prevalence country. According to the national HIV registry data, there has been a sharp increase in newly diagnosed cases since 2004, with a steady increase since 2008. Annually, almost half of the newly diagnosed cases are revealed at the AIDS stage of disease. There is regional heterogeneity in HIV prevalence with higher rates in the capital (Tbilisi), regions bordering Turkey, and in the conflict zone of Abkhazia. Injection drug use remains a major risk factor for HIV transmission. In 2009, more than 70% of new HIV infections were attributed to injection drug use or sexual contact with an injection drug user.

    Drug abuse and its related health and social consequences are critical challenges facing Georgia. As a bridge between Europe and Asia, Georgia and other south Caucasian countries serve as a drug trafficking route into Russia and Europe. The conflict regions may also have conditions that support drug trafficking. No reliable estimates on the extent of drug use in Georgia currently exist

    Since the Injection drug use remains a major risk factor for HIV transmission in Georgia authors of the study aimed to characterize the prevalence of HIV among injection drug users locally.

    To assess the knowledge and behavior in injection drug users a cross-sectional, anonymous bio-behavioral survey in combination with laboratory testing on HIV status was conducted in five Georgian cities in 2009. A snowball sample of 1127 eligible injection drug user participants was investigated.

    Read the full paper at Journal of International Aids Society web site.

  • National Center for Biotechnology Information published CIF’s scientific paper on Unsafe injection and sexual risk behavior among injecting drug users in Georgia

    In August 2011, National Center for Biotechnology Information published CIF’s scientific paper on Unsafe injection and sexual risk behavior among injecting drug users in Georgia.

    The paper describes the prevalence and correlates of unsafe drug injecting and sexual behaviors among IDUs recruited across five cities in Georgia in 2009. IDUs were administered a questionnaire collecting information on demographics, drug use, sexual behaviors, and HIV testing behaviors. Correlates of risky injecting and sexual behaviors were determined using logistic regression. Of 1,127 IDUs, the majority (98.7%) were men, and the median duration of injecting drugs was 7 years. Unsafe injecting behavior at last injection was reported by 51.9% of IDUs, while 16.8% reported both unsafe injecting behavior and not using condoms with last occasional and/or commercial partner.

    Read the article at PubMed, National Center for Biotechnology Information’s web site

  • CIF Study Published in BMC Magazine, The Role of Supportive Supervision on Immunization Program Outcome- a randomized filed trial from Georgia

    The research article by CIF and international experts has been published in BMC International Health and Human Rights 2009. Article is a part of the supplement: The fallacy of coverage: uncovering disparities to improve immunization rates through evidence.The Canadian International Immunization Initiative Phase 2 (CIII2) Operational Research Grants.

    In the republic of Georgia, a country where widespread health care reforms have taken place over the last decade, an intervention was recently implemented to strengthen performance of immunization programs. A range of measures were taken to ensure that immunization managers carry out their activities effectively through direct, personal contact on a regular basis to guide, support and assist designated health care facility staff to become more competent in their immunization work. The study addresses the issues of human resources and its management in improving immunization coverage rates and aims to document the effects of “supportive” supervision on the performance of the immunization program at the district level in Georgia.

    Follow the link to learn more about methods and results of the survey.

    LATEST NEWS

  • National and subnational HIV/AIDS coordination: are global health initiatives closing the gap between intent and practice?

    The research article prepared by the international experts and representatives of Curatio International Foundation was published in the international journal Globalization and Health web site. The article is available at US National Library of Medicine as well.

    The paper identifies residual national and subnational obstacles to effective coordination and optimal use of funds by focal GHIs, which these GHIs, other donors and country partners need to collectively address.

    Follow the link to view the abstract and the full version of the article.

  • The research article on Household Catastrophic Health Expenditure-evidence from Georgia and its policy implications published in BMC Health Services Research

    On April 28,2009 the research article on Household Catastrophic Health Expenditure-evidence from Georgia and its policy implications was published on the online scientific journal BMC Health Services Research. The research undertaken by the highly qualified experts of Curatio International Foundation was funded by the organization itself. The study was based on the data of the Health Care Utilization and Expenditure survey conducted during May-June 2007 prior to preparing for new phase of implementation for the health care financing reforms. It aimed at quantifying extent of catastrophic household health expenditures, exploring its influencing factors and estimating fairness in Financial Contribution (FFC) index in Georgia to establish the baseline for expected reforms and contribute to the design and the fine-tuning of the major reforms in health care financing initiated by the government mid-2007. The research results show that in Georgia between 2000 and 2007 access to care for poor has improved slightly and the share of households facing catastrophic health expenditures have seemingly increased from 2.8% in 1999 to 11.7% in 2007. Follow the link to read the article.