Improving PHC Effectiveness: CIS member states experience discussed at the CIS Network of Institutes for Public Health and Healthcare Digital Transformation meeting

Within the frames of the International Forum on Public Health Innovation and Informatization, held in Kyrgyzstan in September this year, a regular meeting of the CIS Network of Institutes for Public Health and Healthcare Digital Transformation was held.

The theme of the event was " Improving PHC Effectiveness: CIS member states Experience". The moderator of the meeting was Zhuzbay Kasymbekov - Chairman of the Governing Council of the Network of Institutes, Head of the National Institute of Public Health under the Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Olga Khodakova's report on "Methodological approaches to determining the functions of certain categories of health professionals" was the first to be heard. Doctor of Medical Sciences, Head of RIH Department of Healthcare Organization’s Scientific Basis highlighted organizational solutions to improve primary health care availability, such as redistribution of functions between medical organization’s employees, as well as redistribution of patient flows with different purposes of contact between medical organization’s structural units. Both of these solutions allow increasing the share of physicians’ working time for direct communication with patients. The ways of forming patient’s pathways in medical organization - the recommended minimum chain of steps arising from interaction of a medical organization with a patient - were highlighted. Important criteria in forming patient pathways are the correspondence of patient’s pathways to PHC organizational status and contact purpose determination.

The Republic of Uzbekistan representative Valieva M.H., in addition to main issues, paid attention to NCDs prevention in primary health care. The main directions are introduction of adapted WHO clinical protocols on major non-communicable diseases in primary health care and work with the public. The results of STEPS survey in 2019 were presented. A number of documents on healthy lifestyle principles introduction among the population were adopted.

WHO PEN clinical protocols were developed and approved (2017), and subsequently implemented in two pilot regions - Ferghana and Kashkadarya (2017 - 2019). Currently, the pilots’ experience is being extended to the whole Republic of Uzbekistan as part of the ongoing reforms to introduce the State Health Insurance under the new model of service delivery in PHC.

In the course of the event the possibilities of experience exchange in PHC modernization were discussed. It was decided to continue negotiations in this area of work.