Efectos de la descentralización en el financiamiento de la salud en México

Metodologias para alocação equitativa de recursos financeiros em saúde: uma revisão integrativa

RESUMO Há diversas experiências no mundo que visam ao desenvolvimento de metodologias para alocação de recursos para a saúde, contudo, o que resta saber é até que ponto a equidade é operacionalizada nesses métodos. Por isso, este estudo objetivou analisar o que tem sido produzido nas literaturas nacional e internacional a respeito das metodologias de alocação equitativas de recursos em saúde e suas dimensões. Realizou-se uma revisão integrativa em três portais/bases de dados (Bireme, PubMed e Scopus) de artigos científicos, publicados em português, inglês e espanhol. Foram identificados nos artigos o(s) objetivo(s), o método do estudo utilizado pelos pesquisadores e a abordagem sobre a metodologia de alocação de recursos em saúde no que se refere à discussão/operacionalização da equidade. Ainda são poucos os estudos em que alocação equitativa é tema central. Há certa imprecisão sobre a delimitação entre ‘alocar’ e ‘financiar’. Em geral, as metodologias precisam admitir as implicações (bio)éticas relativas à equidade, devem se basear minimamente na dimensão per capita, em conjunto, compulsoriamente, com a orçamentação incremental, com as questões sociodemográficas, sociossanitárias e epidemiológicas e ter centralidade na ‘necessidade de saúde’, sendo necessário um constante aperfeiçoamento da metodologia ao longo do tempo para refinar a operacionalidade da equidade.

Assessing Equity in the Provision of Primary Healthcare Centers in Buenos Aires Province (Argentina): A Stochastic Frontier Analysis

BACKGROUND

Unequal access to healthcare between individuals or populations does not imply the existence of inequities as it must be controlled for differences in need. This is usually done either via direct or indirect standardization methods.

OBJECTIVE

We study the degree of equity in the availability of public primary healthcare centers between the 134 municipalities of the Buenos Aires province (Argentina) with a novel application of an existing statistical tool.

METHODS

Stochastic frontier analysis was applied to estimate the number of primary care facilities that should be available in each municipality according to demographic variables (population under age 4 years and above age 65 years), as they are the population groups with higher healthcare needs.

RESULTS

Under all specifications tried, the endowment of primary healthcare centers at the municipal level tends to increase (but less than proportionally) with the size of the population at risk. In addition, wealthier jurisdictions tend to be more equitable but also more heterogeneous.

CONCLUSIONS

Stochastic frontier analysis allows us to discriminate between those districts that, according to their needs, are underserved, from those who have a surplus of health facilities. This approach can also help to explore what other elements might be responsible for the observed inequities.

Local self governance in health - a study of it's functioning in Odisha, India

BACKGROUND

Local decision making is linked to several service quality improvement parameters. Rogi Kalyan Samitis (RKS) at peripheral decision making health units (DMHU) are composite bodies that are mandated to ensure accountability and transparency in governance, improve quality of services, and facilitate local responsiveness. There is scant literature on the nature of functioning of these institutions in Odisha. This study aimed to assess the perception of RKS members about their roles, involvement and practices with respect to local decision making and management of DMHUs; it further examined perceptual and functional differences between priority and non-priority district set-ups; and identified predictors of involvement of RKS members in local governance of health units.

METHODS

As members of RKS, health service providers, officials in administrative/managerial role, elected representatives, and officials from other departments (including independent members) constituted our study sample. A total of 112 respondents were interviewed across 6 districts, through a multi-stage stratified random sampling; we used a semi-structured interview schedule that comprised mainly of close-ended and some open-ended questions. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to compare 3 priority (PD) and 3 non-priority districts (NPD), categorized on the basis of Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) estimates of 2011 as proxy of population health. Governance, human resource management, financial management and quality improvement functions were studied in detail. Opinion about various individual and organizational factors in local self-governance and predictors of involvement were identified.

RESULTS

The socio-demographic profile and composition of respondents were comparable between PD and NPD. Majority of respondents were 'satisfied' with their current roles in the governance of local health institutions. About one-fourth opined that the amount of funds allocated to RKS under National Health Mission (NHM) was 'grossly insufficient'. Fifty percent of respondents said they requested for additional funds, last year, and 38.8 % informed that they requested additional funds for purchase of drugs. About 87 % respondents were satisfied with their role in the local governance of the health units (PD = 94.3 % vs. NPD = 80.7 %). Almost all (PD = 98 % vs. NPD = 80.7 %) opined that local decision making helped in improving the performance of health units. For most of the open-ended questions the responses were non-specific. Staggering differences were found between PD and NPD with respect to their involvement in district plan preparation (NPD = 78.9 % vs. PD = 58.5 %), training in plan preparation (NPD = 47.4 % vs. PD = 27.5 %), participation of officials from other departments (PD = 96.9 % vs. NPD = 45.5 %), and inclusion of activities of other sectors (PD = 70.8 % vs. NPD = 41.8 %). Whereas, no significant PD-NPD difference was found about their perceived 'involvement' in undertaking the 12 designated responsibilities. Composite scores on various individual and organizational factors were compared and found to be varying significantly. Through regression, we inferred work experience, qualification and non-monetary incentives as strong determinants of current level of involvement of RKS members in governance and management of health units.

CONCLUSION

Poor knowledge/expectation of RKS members was diluting the decision making process at DMHUs. There is an urgent need to improve their knowledge, understanding and expertise in areas of governance and management practices. A locally-monitored and time-bound capacity building plan could achieve this. Yearly resource allocation for drug procurement needs revision. Specific eligibility criteria based on work experience and qualification may be fixed for RKS membership. Further research may focus on identifying the underlying individual and systemic factors behind such large PD-NPD differences.

Exploring the links between macro-level contextual factors and their influence on nursing workforce composition

Research that links macro-level socioeconomic development variables to health care human resources workforce composition is scarce at best. The purpose of this study was to explore the links between nonnursing factors and nursing workforce composition through a secondary, descriptive analysis of year 2000, publicly available national nursing human resources data from Mexico. Building on previous research, the authors conducted multiple robust regression analysis by federal typing of nursing human resources from 31 Mexican states against macro-level socioeconomic development variables. Average education in a state was significantly associated in predicting all types of formally educated nurses in Mexico. Other results suggest that macro-level indicators have a different association with each type of nurse. Context may play a greater role in determining nursing workforce composition than previously thought. Further studies may help to explain differences both within and between countries.

Predicting nursing human resources: an exploratory study

The nurse-to-population ratio (NPOP) is a standard indicator used to indicate a country's health care human resources capacity for responding to its disease burden. This study sought to explore if socioeconomic development indicators could predict the NPOP in a country. Mexico served as the case example for this exploratory study, with the final five variables selected based on findings from a qualitative study analyzing the development of nursing human resources in the country. Multiple linear regression showed that two variables proved significant predictors of the NPOP and the model itself explained 70% of the variance (r( 2) = .7; p = .0000). The findings have multiple implications for nursing human resources policy in Mexico and at a global level as governments attempt to build human capital to respond to population health needs.