Institutional And Economic Perspectives On Government Capacity To Assume New Roles In The Health Sector

New thinking about the management of public health services has stimulated a widespread movement for health sector reform across the world. This book examines the feasibility and desirability of common reforms in low income countries, based on in-depth case studies in Ghana, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, and asks whether governments possess or can develop the capacities needed for these new and often complex roles. The book challenges conventional reform wisdom, and argues that reform approaches are needed that are more sensitive to the institutional characteristics of individual countries.

Accessible and edited by authors based at a top institution, this book provides readers with an excellent summary in an easy-to-read style of this burgeoning field of research. In this volume Bennett, Gilson and Mills have gathered together essays written by academics and experts in the fields of health policy and economic development, each underscoring the need for political commitment to meet the needs of the poor and the development of strategies to build this commitment, covering: evidence regarding the links between health, economic development and household poverty evidence on the extent to which health care systems address the needs of the poor and the near poor innovative measures to make health care interventions widely available to the poor. Current and topical, this book is of great relevance to policy makers and practitioners in the field of international health and development and researchers engaged with global health and poverty as well as being ideal reading for students of international health and development.

Reforming the African Public Sector: Retrospect and Prospectsis an in-depth and wide-ranging review of the available literature on African public sector reforms. It illustrates several differing country experiences to buttress the main observations and conclusions. It adopts a structural/institutional approach which underpins most of the reform efforts on the continent. To contextualize reform of the public sector and understand its processes, dynamics and intricacies, the book examines the state and state capacity building in Africa, especially when there can be no state without an efficient public sector. In addition, the book addresses a number of theories such as the new institutional economics, public choice and new public management, which have in one way or another influenced most of the initiatives implemented under public sector reform in Africa. There is also a survey of the three phases of public sector reform which have emerged and the balance sheet of reform strategies, namely, decentralization, privatization, deregulation, agencification, co-production and public-private partnerships. It concludes by identifying possible alternative approaches such as developing a vigorous public sector ethos and sustained capacity building to promote and enhance the renewal and reconstruction of the African public sector within the context of the New Partnerships for Africa's Development (NEPAD), good governance and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

This international collection of essays on globalization and health examines the global health issues associated with the economic, technological, political, social, cultural and environmental effects of globalization—the increasing movement of capital, people, technology, goods, information, environmental pollution, and disease around the globe. These essays analyze the complex linkages between globalization and health, the health effects of globalization at all levels (global, national, and local), and the policy and institutional responses associated with the health consequences of globalization.

The debate about health care reform has gone on for many years. The debate has generated often innovative ideas for reform that transcend national boundaries. For example, proposals have been made for an extension of health insurance with a framework of social protection; progressive development of funding methods; controls on expenditure; bringing benefits into line with what is actually needed; and the application of technological advances. The book concentrates on health insurance policy innovations in selected countries in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. In addition this book addresses recent institutional economic findings with regard to application of information technology in health insurance systems. Topics discussed include: new approaches in extending coverage in a health insurance system, confronting resource scarcity: innovative strategies, refining benefits to meet current needs, new institutional and administrative frameworks, and transformation through information technology systems. Many of the innovations presented here have already been integrated into existing reforms and the authors refer to concrete developments in individual countries and regions. This book presents those important innovations to social health insurance systems in industrialized and developing countries that have been brought forward in recent years and, as far as possible, already evaluated. In doing so, the intention is to show developments that are valid for more than one country and could have long term impact on health insurance systems. This book is intended to promote deeper exchanges of experience between differing regions, countries, and health insurance systems. In this way it will stimulate ideas for politicians and practitioners, scientists and other experts.

As the largest expenditure category of the health systems in both industrialised and developing countries, hospital care provision has been the focus of reforms over recent decades. This publication reviews recent trends in hospital policy reforms and options around the world; and includes case studies which offer insights into lessons learned. Issues considered include: differences in income levels, cultural settings and market environments; organisational changes such as increased management autonomy and privatisation; the need for parallel reforms and effective evaluation mechanisms.

This book examines the challenge of reform of the urban water supply sector in developing countries, based on case studies of state-owned water companies in Ghana, India, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. The growing public private partnership for urban water supply is analyzed, focussing on the concession contract model. The implications for meeting the water needs of the urban poor, for the regulatory role of the state and for state capacity building are also discussed.