Universal Health Coverage

India's success in saving children's lives so far means that it hasn't just met but surpassed the UN's ambitious Millennium Development Goal (MDG) on child mortality. As the global community approaches the adoption of the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September 2015, Bill Gates, founder and co-chair of The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, reflects on India's achievements and the need to make sure that primary health care systems reach every single person with high-quality services.

Health systems founded on strong primary health care are essential to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and universal health coverage. Authors on behalf of the World Organization of Family Doctors' (WONCA) executive committee discuss the need for global primary care development indicators to strengthen primary health care systems. They call on the UN and other stakeholders to commit to the measurement and development of high-quality and comprehensive primary care. 

As one of the leading groups embracing the Alma Ata Declaration for Primary Health Care 40 years ago, nurses have been calling for strong primary health care for decades. Dr. Judith Shamian, President of the International Council of Nurses (ICN), shares her perspective on the impact of the Ebola outbreak and calls for action on the need to re-conceptualize primary health care systems with focus on the centrality of the healthcare workforce.

The global health agenda has often suffered from fragmentation, taking a siloed approach to particular diseases and interventions. During the Ebola crisis, we saw that underfunded, fragmented and understaffed health systems can be quickly overwhelmed, allowing an outbreak to escalate into an epidemic. Jasmine Whitbread, CEO of Save the Children International, shares insight into building strong health systems so that all can have access to high-quality health care.

To address the challenge of weak primary health care systems in low- and middle-income countries, members of the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage (JLN) Primary Health Care technical initiative have co-developed a diagnostic UHC Primary Health Care Self-Assessment Tool, a multi-stakeholder survey to help countries assess whether their health financing approaches are well aligned with primary care initiatives, efforts, and programs. Read on to learn more about the tool and discover highlights from early pilots in Malaysia, Ghana, Indonesia, and India.

When supported by strong public health policies and with aligned efforts across social, economic, and political domains, primary health care has a central role in achievement of sustainable development. Originally published in The Lancet, this commentary explores the integral role that strong primary health care systems will play in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and Universal Health Coverage.

What is a young mother looking for when seeking health care for her child, her elderly father or herself? Quality primary health care. Quality can drive the necessary convergence of the current global dialogue on universal health coverage (UHC) and primary health care (PHC), as a sharp entry point to catalyzing change at the frontline of service delivery. In this blog, Dr. Shams Syed of the World Health Organization reflects on the need for action to support countries in utilizing PHC performance as a key driver in achieving universal health coverage.

At the Conference on Universal Health Coverage in the New Development Era, which took place in Tokyo, Japan on December 16, 2015, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim shared his insight on the global momentum around universal health coverage and highlighted new partnerships, including the Primary Health Care Performance Initiative, that can work to accelerate progress towards the achievement of universal health coverage goals. Read on for President Kim's full speech.

Commemerating the recent second annual UHC day, read on to understand how the UHC movement evolved from a nascent movement to a global force over the course of a few short years and learn why high-quality PHC is one of the best bets for achieving UHC goals.

Countries around the globe have committed to implementing reforms to achieve universal health coverage. Now what? Read on for a snapshot of what the Primary Health Care Performance Initiative (PHCPI) has planned in 2016 to support the global movement toward UHC through better primary health care.

Read on to learn how the president of the World Organization of Family Doctors, Michael Kidd, thinks primary health care is key to meeting global goals for Universal Health Coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Universal Health Coverage has been a priority in Nigeria since 2000, but it was really the National Health Policy of 2006 and the National Strategy Development Plan of 2010-2015 that elevated the need for UHC in Nigeria. Still, despite both these documents, not much progress towards UHC had been made until former President, Goodluck Jonathan, passed a declaration that called health a fundamental right and the responsibility of the government.

Why is it important for countries to track and understand primary health care spending? Read on as Federica Secci, Health Specialist at the World Bank Group, discusses how accurate primary health care spending data is critical to improving systems and meeting Universal Health Coverage goals. 

Strengthening primary health care (PHC) is essential to achieve universal health coverage and the health-related Sustainable Development Goals, and PHC system strengthening requires good measurement. The PHC Measurement for Improvement Collaborative, launched in April 2016 in Accra, Ghana by the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage and the Primary Health Care Performance Initiative, will co-develop practical tools and approaches – drawing on collective country experiences—to support country policymakers, health system managers, and frontline providers to effectively use data for PHC improvement.

PHCPI was honored to participate in the momentous conversations at Women Deliver last week. Read on to see how PHC was featured during Women Deliver 2016.

Ariana Childs Graham, Director of the Primary Healthcare Initiative at PAI, shares her thoughts on primary health care (PHC) as the foundation of all health systems and the role of the Primary Health Care Global Strategy Group (PHCGSG) in increasing recognition and support for PHC in the global development arena and advocating for PHC as a foundational pillar of universal health coverage.

As countries around the globe grapple with aging populations, a rising burden on non-communicable diseases, and the omnipresent risk of outbreaks, developing people-centered, integrated health systems with primary care at their core becomes ever more essential. An analysis of 22 successful reforms reveal eight characteristics of successful primary health care reforms that countries can adopt to address their specific strengths, needs, and challenges. These tenets comprise a valuable framework for understanding the characteristics of high-performing middle and high-income country primary health care systems.

Ghana created the Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) initiative in 1994 to aim of reducing barriers to geographic access to primary health care. Read on to learn about the critical success factors of the program--community engagement and participation--and practical guidance for implementation.

On Monday, December 12, the world recognize Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day. Share the videos and graphics below to spread the word about why primary health care is the fastest, cheapest, most efficient way to reach UHC.

On this UHC Day, our colleagues at the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Coalition call on global health leaders to commit to spending three-quarters of our time on domestic resource mobilization. If the world is serious about achieving UHC, we need to rebalance spending and put countries in the driver's seat.

This piece was originally published on Crossing the Divide, a Medium blog.

Read on as Results for Development's Gina Lagomarsino explains why primary health care is the cheapest, fastests, most efficient way to achieve Universal Health Coverage.

The Ariadne Labs Primary Health Care team has been working with countries around the world on how to improve primary health care, a cornerstone of achieving universal health coverage.

In November 2016, Qualis Health, a Seattle-based nonprofit population health organization, convened a symposium titled “Primary Care in the United States: Lessons Learned to Inform Global Efforts to Improve Primary Care” at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation headquarters. Sixteen experts from across the U.S. shared examples of healthcare delivery that illustrate high-functioning primary care, and described system innovations for improved care, better population health, and effective healthcare spending. Read—and watch—to see what lessons pockets of excellence in U.S. primary health care can inspire around the world.

As the 70th World Health Assembly (WHA) meeting comes to a close, it is important to recognize that dialogue among country actors and the global community is critical for collective progress. In this open letter to WHA delegates, members of the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage Primary Health Care Measurement for Improvement Collaborative share key insights on the need to better measure and strengthen primary health care systems.

Revitalizing Health for All examines 13 cases of efforts to implement comprehensive primary health care reforms in communities around the globe, including in Australia, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, and Iran. The case studies originated from an international research-to-action initiative that brought researchers and research-users from national public health systems together to design, implement, and assess local projects.

Jishnu Das, Lead Economist at the Development Research Group at the World Bank, recently wrote a letter to Oxfam encouraging a reframing of the questions about quality of PHC services in the private sector. 

Join us for an interactive community consultation on measurement for improvement in quality primary health care. We want to hear your perspectives and ideas!

Executive Director Beth Tritter sits down with UHC2030 to discuss PHCPI's motivation for joining, and the value of the UHC2030 agenda.