To empower patients and improve the quality of care, policy-makers increasingly adopt systems to enhance person-centred care. Although models of person-centredness and patient-centredness vary, respecting the needs and preferences of individuals receiving care is paramount. In Sweden, as in other countries, healthcare providers seek to improve person-centred principles and address gaps in practice. Consequently, researchers at the University of Gothenburg Centre for Person-Centred Care are currently delivering person-centred interventions employing a framework that incorporates three routines. These include eliciting the patient's narrative, agreeing a partnership with shared goals between patient and professional, and safeguarding this through documentation.
Multi-country purchasing study
The international research consortium RESYST (Resilient & responsive Health Systems) has examined healthcare purchasing functions in some low and middle-income countries to identify factors that influence the ability of healthcare purchasers and other key actors to take strategic actions. The countries included in the study are: Kenya, India, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Thailand and Vietnam.
From a universal health coverage perspective, this research project focus on purchasing of services from healthcare providers. This core function of healthcare financing must be designed and undertaken strategically to promote quality, efficiency, equity and responsiveness in health service provision and, in doing so, purchasing facilitate progress towards universal health coverage.
The research examined the relationships between purchasers and other groups of actors involved in purchasing mechanisms, including the government, healthcare providers and citizens, so as to understand the various components of strategic purchasing and the organizational environment within which it operates.
The study makes some ...