Health Equity: 06/26/08

Thursday, June 26, 2008

[EQ] Universal Mandatory Health Insurance In The Netherlands - Health Prioritization: The Case Of Chile

Universal Mandatory Health Insurance In The Netherlands:
A Model For The United States?

Wynand van de Ven, professor of health insurance in the Institute of Health Policy and Management at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Frederik Schut, professor of health economics at the institute.

Health Affairs, 27, no. 3 (May-June 2008): 771-781 doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.3.771 -Project HOPE

Available free online at: http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/full/27/3/771

“…..Policy analysts consider the Netherlands health system a possible model for the United States. Since 2006 all Dutch citizens have to buy standardized individual health insurance coverage from a private insurer. Consumers have an annual choice among insurers, and insurers can selectively contract or integrate with health care providers. Subsidies make health insurance affordable for everyone. A Risk Equalization Fund compensates insurers for enrollees with predictably high medical expenses. The reform is a work in progress. So far the emphasis has been on the health insurance market. The challenge is now to successfully reform the market for the provision of health care….”

Global Innovations

PROLOGUE: Global Innovations In Payment And Coverage

Extract: http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/extract/27/3/770

Health Prioritization: The Case Of Chile

Verónica Vargas and Sergio Poblete

Health Affairs, 27, no. 3 (May-June 2008): 771-781 doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.3.771 -Project HOPE

Extract: http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/27/3/782

“…..This paper examines the introduction of a prioritized list offifty-six health conditions in Chile, for which access to treatmentis guaranteed. This is an important health reform issue, andthe discussion of Chile’s rich and complex approach maybenefit other countries. Conditions on the list were selectedusing multiple criteria: burden of disease, inequality, highcosts, social preferences, rule of rescue, and cost-effectiveness.

The dominant criteria were high burden of disease and socialpreferences. Cost-effectiveness was introduced after the factto identify effective treatments at a cost that the countrycould afford….”

VERONICA VARGAS: vvargas@uahurtado.cl

http://www.economia.uahurtado.cl/mae/html/veronica_vargas.html

* * * *

This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues. [DD/ KMS Area]

“Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members”.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAHO/WHO Website: http://www.paho.org/
Equity List - Archives - Join/remove: http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.

[EQ] Summary of the Evidence on patient safety: Implications for Research

SUMMARY OF THE EVIDENCE ON PATIENT SAFETY: IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH

The Research Priority Setting Working Group of the World Alliance for Patient Safety

World Health Organization 2008

Available online PDF file [136p.] at:

http://www.who.int/patientsafety/information_centre/20080523_Summary_of_the_evidence_on_patient_safety.pdf

‘…..This publication of the World Health Organization aims to outline the future direction of patient safety research across the globe.

Patient safety research does not have the benefit of the well-established approaches available to other fields of medical study. Multiple hurdles and challenges will need to be faced when designing trials, conducting audits and making use of novel techniques, such as those that directly involve the patient as a partner in risk identification and problem resolution. This is partly related to the fact that patient safety research is a new field of study and that traditional research methods may therefore need to be suitably adapted.

We must develop a better understanding of adverse events in health care: their causes, how they are reported, how to learn from them and prevent them. Setting nationally and internationally recognized research priorities enables the selection of areas for research that are not only important for individual countries, but also allow collaboration and sharing of findings across geographical borders.

This publication outlines the areas that the World Alliance for Patient Safety recommends for urgent attention, through a rigorous consensus process by international experts. Priorities should then be set by researchers and research leaders, according to the preference of countries….” Sir Liam Donaldson

Chair, WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety, Chief Medical Officer for England

Content:

Executive summary

Section I Background and main findings

Section II Outcomes of unsafe medical care

1 Adverse events due to drug treatment

2 Adverse events and injuries due to medical devices

3 Injuries due to surgical and anaesthesia errors

4 Health care-associated infections

5 Unsafe injection practices

6 Unsafe blood products

7 Safety of pregnant women and newborns

8 Safety of the elderly

9 Injuries due to falls in hospitals

10 Decubitus ulcers

Section III Structural factors that contribute to unsafe care

11 Organizational determinants and latent failures

12 Structural accountability: use of accreditation and regulation to ensure patient safety

13 Safety culture

14 Training, education and human resources

15 Stress and fatigue

16 Production pressure

17 Lack of appropriate knowledge and its transfer

18 Devices and procedures with no human factors

Section IV Processes that contribute to unsafe care

19 Misdiagnosis

20 Poor test follow-up

21 Counterfeit and substandard drugs

22 Inadequate measures of patient safety

23 Lack of involvement of patients in patient safety

Section V Discussion, recommendations and conclusions

References

WHO website: http://www.who.int/patientsafety/research/grants/en/index.html

* * * *

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.