How Do We Measure the Success of Integrated Health Services?
By Jen Snell
A health worker helps a mother and her baby at a health facility in Ouagadougou in 2017. Photo by Trevor Snapp for IntraHealth International.December 10, 2021Countries in West Africa have some of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the world. Women in this region face a1 in 34 lifetime risk of maternal death and34 of every 1,000 infants do not survive their first 28 days. An estimated24% of women have an unmet need for family planning and only 1 in 5 women are accessing modern contraception.Achievinguniversal health coverage—wherein all people have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship—would turn these numbers around. One way to get there, the World Health Organization says, is through client-centered services integration. This is a way of providing a package of health services during a single visit—such as family planning and nutrition services and maternal care and newborn/infant care. And while it’s more efficient for the client and for the facility, it also means families who have to travel great distances to a health facility are more likely to get all the care they need.This is a great way to advance universal health coverage in countries where access to care remains a big challenge.It was in response to these challenges that IntraHealth introduced theINSPiRE initiative. Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, INSPiRE helps national governme...
Source: IntraHealth International - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: kseaton Tags: Family Planning & Reproductive Health Maternal, Newborn, Child Health Universal Health Coverage Day Primary Health Care Source Type: news
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