ICTs and the challenge of health system transition in low and middle-income countries

Universal Health Coverage and Primary Healthcare: Lessons From Japan; Comment on “Achieving Universal Health Coverage by Focusing on Primary Care in Japan: Lessons for Low- and Middle-Income Countries”

A recent editorial by Naoki Ikegami has proposed three key lessons from Japan’s experience of achieving virtually universal coverage with primary healthcare services: the need to integrate the existing providers of primary healthcare services into the organised health system; the need to limit government commitments to finance hospital services and the need to empower providers of primary healt...

Non-physician Clinicians – A Gain for Physicians’ Working in Sub-Saharan Africa; Comment on “Non-physician Clinicians in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Evolving Role of Physicians”

The changing demands on the health sectors in low- and middle-income countries especially sub-Saharan African countries continue to challenge efforts to address critical shortages of the health workforce. Addressing these challenges have led to the evolution of “non-physician clinicians” (NPCs), that assume some physician roles and thus mitigate the continuing shortage of doctors in these count...

Achieving Universal Health Coverage by Focusing on Primary Care in Japan: Lessons for Low- and Middle-Income Countries

When the Japanese government adopted Western medicine in the late nineteenth century, it left intact the infrastructure of primary care by giving licenses to the existing practitioners and by initially setting the hurdle for entry into medical school low. Public financing of hospitals was kept minimal so that almost all of their revenue came from patient charges. When social health insurance (S...

Are We Asking All the Right Questions About Quality of Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries?

Realist Synthesis of the International Theory and Evidence on Strategies to Improve Childhood Vaccination in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Developing Strategies for the Nigerian Healthcare System

Background Childhood vaccination coverage rates in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) vary significantly, with some countries achieving higher rates than others. Several attempts have been made in Nigeria to achieve universal vaccination coverage but with limited success. This study aimed to analyse strategies used to improve ...

Community Health Worker Programs to Improve Healthcare Access and Equity: Are They Only Relevant to Low- and Middle-Income Countries?

Background Community Health Workers (CHWs) are proven to be highly effective in low- and middle-income countries with many examples of successful large-scale programs. There is growing interest in deploying CHW programs in high-income countries to address inequity in healthcare access and outcomes amongst population groups facing disadvantage. This study is the first that examines the scope and...