Comparing health policy: An assessment of typologies of health systems

2010 ◽  
pp. 185-201
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Comparative Study ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Institutional Context ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Ideal Types

Typologies have been central to the comparative turn in public policy and this paper contributes to the debate by assessing the capacity of typologies of health systems to capture the institutional context of health care and to contribute to explaining health policies across countries. Using a recent comparative study of health policy and focusing on the concept of the health care state the paper suggests three things. First, the concept of the health care state holds as a set of ideal types. Second, as such the concept of the health care state provides a useful springboard for analyzing health policy, but one which needs to be complemented by more specific institutional explanations. Third, the concept of the health care state is less applicable to increasingly important, non-medical areas of health policy. Instead, different aspects of institutional context come into play and they can be combined as part of a looser ‘‘organizing framework''.

scholarly journals Southern social world-regionalisms: The place of health in nine African regional economic communities

2020 ◽  
pp. 146801812096185
Author(s):  
Nicola Yeates ◽  
Rebecca Surender
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Regional Integration ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
World Health ◽  
Regional Health ◽  
Regional Economic

This article presents key results from a comparative qualitative Social Policy study of nine African regional economic communities’ (RECs) regional health policies. The article asks to what extent has health been incorporated into RECs’ public policy functions and actions, and what similarities and differences are evident among the RECs. Utilising a World Health Organization (WHO) framework for conceptualising health systems, the research evidence routes the article’s arguments towards the following principal conclusions. First, the health sector is a key component of the public policy functions of most of the RECs. In these RECs, innovations in health sector organisation are notable; there is considerable regulatory, organisational, resourcing and programmatic diversity among the RECs alongside under-resourcing and fragmentation within each of them. Second, there are indications of important tangible benefits of regional cooperation and coordination in health, and growing interest by international donors in regional mechanisms through which to disburse health and -related Official Development Assistance (ODA). Third, content analysis of RECs’ regional health strategies suggests fairly minimal strategic ambitions as well as significant limitations of current approaches to advancing effective and progressive health reform. The lack of emphasis on universal health care and reliance on piecemeal donor funding are out of step with approaches and recommendations increasingly emphasising health systems development, sector-wide approaches (SWAPs) and primary health care as the bedrock of health services expansion. Overall, the health component of RECs’ development priorities is consistent with an instrumentalist social policy approach. The development of a more comprehensive sustainable world-regional health policy is unlikely to come from the African Continental Free-Trade Area, which lacks requisite social and health clauses to underpin ‘positive’ forms of regional integration.

scholarly journals 18.L. Workshop: Public mental health policies - experiences and challenges

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Participatory Research ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Mental Health Policy ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
National Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Policies

Abstract The workshop has the aim to help developing and strengthening policies for Public Mental Health and support experience sharing platform for Public Mental Health policy development. Mental health policy defines the vision for the future mental health of the national population and internationally. The WHOs developed three recommendations for the development of mental health policy, strategic plans and for organizing services which are to deinstitutionalise mental health care; to integrate mental health into general health care; and to develop community mental health services. For each this aim a situational analysis and needs assessment is recommended as first step. Therefore, this workshop consists of four talks in the development of mental health policies at the regional and national level. First, the process of population consultations and participatory research is described (Felix Sisenop). Participatory research enables exchanging experiences, results and key challenges in Public Mental Health. Participatory research can contribute greatly in empowering people to discuss and deal with mental health issues and therefore is a step towards a more involved and active general public. Second, a policy development at the regional level is described (Elvira Mauz). On behalf of the federal ministry of health the Robert Koch Institute as the German public health institute is currently developing a concept for a national Mental Health Surveillance (MHS). In the talk objectives, framework model and work processes are presented. The MHS should systematically gather, process and analyze primary and secondary data, thus an integrating and monitoring system is working. Third, the Public Mental Health policy in Malta will be described (John Cachia) Over the last 7 years CMH Malta developed a strategic framework for the mental health with the input of patients, families, service providers, NGOs and civil society. The Maltese National Mental Health Strategy 2020-2030 was published in July 2019. This strategy will be described in the Talk. Fourth presenter (Ignas Rubikas) will introduce the national perspective on development of Lithuanian mental health policy addressing major public mental health challenges of suicide prevention, alcohol control policies and mental health promotion in a broader context of national mental health care. Key messages Participatory research in Public Mental Health is an approach to involve the population in policy development. Development of mental health policies can benefit from sharing experiences and lessons learned on a national and regional levels.

The regulation of health care in Scandinavia: professionals, the public interest and trust

2018 ◽  
pp. 61-76
Author(s):  
Karsten Vrangbæk
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Health System ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Public Interest ◽  
State Level ◽  
Professional Regulation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Voluntary Health Insurance

Scandinavian health systems have traditionally been portrayed as relatively similar examples of decentralised, public integrated health systems. However, recent decades have seen significant public policy developments in the region that should lead us to modify our understanding. Several dimensions are important for understanding such developments. First, several of the countries have undergone structural reforms creating larger governance units and strengthening the state level capacity to regulate professionals and steer developments at the regional and municipal levels. Secondly, the three Nordic countries studied experienced an increase in the purchase of voluntary health insurance and the use of private providers. This introduces several issues for the equality of users and the efficiency of the system. This paper will investigate such trends and address the question: Is the Nordic health system model changing, and what are the consequences for trust, professional regulation and the public interest?

scholarly journals Death in hospital and at home: population and health policy influences in Londrina, State of Paraná, Brazil (1996-2010)

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 833-840 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernando Cesar Iwamoto Marcucci ◽  
Marcos Aparecido Sarria Cabrera
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Information System ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Epidemiological Transition ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
Hospital Deaths ◽  
End Stage ◽  
The City ◽  
At Home

An aging population and epidemiological transition involves prolonged terminal illnesses and an increased demand for end-stage support in health services, mainly in hospitals. Changes in health care and government health policies may influence the death locations, making it possible to remain at home or in an institution. The scope of this article is to analyze death locations in the city of Londrina, State of Paraná, from 1996 to 2010, and to verify the influence of population and health policy changes on these statistics. An analysis was conducted into death locations in Londrina in Mortality Information System (SIM) considering the main causes and locations of death. There was an increase of 28% in deaths among the population in general, though 48% for the population over 60 years of age. There was an increase of deaths in hospitals, which were responsible for 70% of the occurrences, though death frequencies in others locations did not increase, and deaths in the home remained at about 18%. The locations of death did not change during this period, even with health policies that broadened care in other locations, such as the patient´s home. The predominance of hospital deaths was similar to other Brazilian cities, albeit higher than in other countries.

Paternalism, Autonomy, and the Common Good

2021 ◽  
pp. 89-109
Author(s):  
James Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Public Health Policy ◽  
Common Good ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Public Health Policies ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Common Good ◽  
The Common

Public health policies are often accused of being paternalistic, or to show the ‘Nanny State’ in action. This chapter argues that complaints about paternalism in public health policy are, for a variety of reasons, much less convincing than is often thought. First, for conceptual reasons, it is difficult to specify what it would be for a policy to be paternalistic. Second, two of the elements that make paternalism problematic at an individual level—interference with liberty and lack of individual consent—are endemic to public policy contexts in general and so cannot be used to support the claim that paternalism in particular is wrong. The chapter concludes that instead of debating whether a given policy is paternalistic, it would be better to ask whether the infringements of liberty it contains are justifiable, without placing any weight on whether or not those infringements of liberty are paternalistic.

Epidemiology and Public Policy

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos E. Molina
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Research Design ◽  
Evidence Based Practice ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Health Care Economics ◽  
Mental Health Systems

This chapter reviews topics on epidemiology, biostatistics and research design. In addition, topics on mental health systems, evidence-based practice and health care economics will be reviewed. Topics on public policy and law and psychiatry will be reviewed in this chapter

scholarly journals Mental health system governance in Nigeria: challenges, opportunities and strategies for improvement

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Abdulmalik ◽  
L. Kola ◽  
O. Gureje
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Health System ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Mental Health System ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Health System Governance ◽  
Low And Middle Income

IntroductionA health systems approach to understanding efforts for improving health care services is gaining traction globally. A component of this approach focuses on health system governance (HSG), which can make or mar the successful implementation of health care interventions. Very few studies have explored HSG in low- and middle-income countries, including Nigeria. Studies focusing on mental health system governance, are even more of a rarity. This study evaluates the mental HSG of Nigeria with a view to understanding the challenges, opportunities and strategies for strengthening it.MethodologyThis study was conducted as part of the project, Emerging Mental Health Systems in Low and Middle Income Countries (Emerald). A multi-method study design was utilized to evaluate the mental HSG status of Nigeria. A situational analysis of the health policy and legal environment in the country was performed. Subsequently, 30 key informant interviews were conducted at national, state and district levels to explore the country's mental HSG.ResultsThe existing policy, legislative and institutional framework for HSG in Nigeria reveals a complete exclusion of mental health in key health sector documents. The revised mental health policy is however promising. Using the Siddiqi framework categories, we identified pragmatic strategies for mental health system strengthening that include a consideration of existing challenges and opportunities within the system.ConclusionThe identified strategies provide a template for the subsequent activities of the Emerald Programme (and other interventions), towards strengthening the mental health system of Nigeria.

scholarly journals Public involvement policies in health: exploring their conceptual basis

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Wait ◽  
Ellen Nolte
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Conceptual Basis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Current Health ◽  
Care Services

Despite its obvious appeal, the concept of public involvement is poorly defined and its rationale and objectives are rarely specified when applied to current health policy contexts. This paper explores some of the underlying concepts, definitions, and issues underpinning public involvement policies and proposes a set of criteria and questions that need to be addressed to allow for the evaluation of public involvement strategies and their impact on the health policy process. It aims to further our understanding of the role that public involvement may play in contributing to health systems that are responsive to the needs and priorities of the public, and, ultimately, providing better health and health care services to the community at large.

Health care outputs, outcomes and performance: a review of the debate

2010 ◽  
pp. 145-166
Author(s):  
Angela Genova
Keyword(s):  
Health Systems ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Ideal Types ◽  
Welfare Policies ◽  
Services Sector ◽  
The Family ◽  
Welfare Systems ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Analytical Category

Comparative studies on health systems in Europe show growing convergence in terms of general characteristics, while insufficient attention is paid to the overall range of varying welfare policies within which the health systems operate. By developing the theoretical model of health systems, this work puts forward the construction of an analytical approach able to contextualise health policies within the relative welfare systems. It proposes health regimes as an analytical category, defined on the basis of the different roles played by the actors called on to respond to health needs: the state, the market, the services sector and the family. Through a comparative study of a number of indicators, it outlines the four main ideal types of health regime in Europe. The attention on the contexts in which health systems operate makes it possible to recognise and valorise the contribution that the various actors make in responding to health needs, thus promoting a more complete vision for the analysis of health policies in Europe.

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