Strengthening Health Service Delivery for Universal Health Coverage Through Synergistic Partnerships Between the Public and Private Health Sector

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic coupled with ongoing crises such as armed conflicts, increasing food insecurity, political and economic instability, has halted progress made towards advancing universal health coverage (UHC), as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2021.

Getting UHC efforts back on track will require concerted action, not only through the public health sector, but also by strengthening engagement of the private health sector, which is often the first point of care in many settings. The pursuit of UHC requires countries to take ownership of healthcare, irrespective of where a person seeks care, in the public or private sector. The private health sector is a major provider of health services across regions and different socioeconomic groups including the poor.

The aim of this chapter is to highlight ongoing efforts and strategies to strengthen private health sector engagement for UHC, which includes showcasing ongoing efforts in this area to combat tuberculosis. Key challenges and opportunities are presented emphasizing the need to take private health sector engagement to scale in the quest to ensure health for all. WHO’s Strategy “Engaging the private health service delivery sector through governance in mixed health systems” is shared alongside a case study on private sector engagement efforts to end tuberculosis.