Any analysis of health financing issues has to begin with sound estimates of the level and flow of resources in a health system, including total levels of spending, the sources of health expenditures, the uses of funds in terms of services purchased, and in terms of who purchases them. The analysis should also aim at understanding how these resource flows are correlated with health system outcomes, including those of improving health, reducing health inequalities, and reducing the incidence of catastrophic health expenditure. National Health Accounts (NHA) provide a framework to collect, compile, and analyze such data on all types of health spending in a country—and so create a robust evidence base for policy making. Although NHA data delineate the key financial metrics of a health system, the collection of these data have not been institutionalized in most developing countries. The root problems are often the same: insufficient resources to collect, collate, analyze and produce information on spending; poor development of health and other information systems; low levels of local capacity to interpret information to meet policy needs; and inadequate demand for data within countries. Furthermore, in many low- and middle-income countries, NHA activities have been conducted as ad hoc, donor-driven initiatives. Since 2008, the World Bank has been coordinating a global initiative to identify bottlenecks to the institutionalization of NHA, and to learn lessons in countries at different stages on the journey towards this institutionalization. The focus has been less on the production of NHA and more on its relevance as a tool to enable policy makers develop and implement evidence-based decisions, and better measure the impact of health reforms, especially those related to health financing. This report has been developed through a consultative process, involving experts and policy makers from more than fifty low-, middle- and high-income countries, large and small, in all corners of the world, development partners and World Bank staff globally. The report represents a synthesis of lessons learned from country experiences and is intended to serve as a strategic guide to countries and their development partners as they design and implement their strategy to develop nationally relevant and internationally comparable data, collected in a routine and cost-effective manner.

Any analysis of health financing issues has to begin with sound estimates of the level and flow of resources in a health system, including total levels of spending, the sources of health expenditures, the uses of funds in terms of services purchased, and in terms of who purchases them. The analysis should also aim at understanding how these resource flows are correlated with health system outcomes, including those of improving health, reducing health inequalities, and reducing the incidence of catastrophic health expenditure. National Health Accounts (NHA) provide a framework to collect, compi.

Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.

This report summarize the experience since 2008 of the global efforts coordinated by the World Bank to use National Health Accounts (NHA) to better assess sources and allocation of public, donor and private health expenditures and inform countries' health financing policies.

Based on careful analysis of burden of disease and the costs ofinterventions, this second edition of 'Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries, 2nd edition' highlights achievable priorities; measures progresstoward providing efficient, equitable care; promotes cost-effectiveinterventions to targeted populations; and encourages integrated effortsto optimize health. Nearly 500 experts - scientists, epidemiologists, health economists,academicians, and public health practitioners - from around the worldcontributed to the data sources and methodologies, and identifiedchallenges and priorities, resulting in this integrated, comprehensivereference volume on the state of health in developing countries.

In 2015, building on the advances of the Millennium Development Goals, the United Nations adopted Sustainable Development Goals that include an explicit commitment to achieve universal health coverage by 2030. However, enormous gaps remain between what is achievable in human health and where global health stands today, and progress has been both incomplete and unevenly distributed. In order to meet this goal, a deliberate and comprehensive effort is needed to improve the quality of health care services globally. Crossing the Global Quality Chasm: Improving Health Care Worldwide focuses on one particular shortfall in health care affecting global populations: defects in the quality of care. This study reviews the available evidence on the quality of care worldwide and makes recommendations to improve health care quality globally while expanding access to preventive and therapeutic services, with a focus in low-resource areas. Crossing the Global Quality Chasm emphasizes the organization and delivery of safe and effective care at the patient/provider interface. This study explores issues of access to services and commodities, effectiveness, safety, efficiency, and equity. Focusing on front line service delivery that can directly impact health outcomes for individuals and populations, this book will be an essential guide for key stakeholders, governments, donors, health systems, and others involved in health care.

In this book the authors explore the state of the art on efficiency measurement in health systems and international experts offer insights into the pitfalls and potential associated with various measurement techniques. The authors show that: - The core idea of efficiency is easy to understand in principle - maximizing valued outputs relative to inputs, but is often difficult to make operational in real-life situations - There have been numerous advances in data collection and availability, as well as innovative methodological approaches that give valuable insights into how efficiently health care is delivered - Our simple analytical framework can facilitate the development and interpretation of efficiency indicators.

In the realm of health care, privacy protections are needed to preserve patients' dignity and prevent possible harms. Ten years ago, to address these concerns as well as set guidelines for ethical health research, Congress called for a set of federal standards now known as the HIPAA Privacy Rule. In its 2009 report, Beyond the HIPAA Privacy Rule: Enhancing Privacy, Improving Health Through Research, the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Health Research and the Privacy of Health Information concludes that the HIPAA Privacy Rule does not protect privacy as well as it should, and that it impedes important health research.

A guide to evidence-based decision making for healthcare, medical and nurse managers. New edition of a highly praised and successful book in one of the hottest areas of medicine. Covers the vital areas for healthcare managers - finding and appraising evidence and developing the capacity of individuals and organisations to use evidence. Pressure on healthcare services is growing - this book will be indispensable for managers making difficult decisions about the allocation of scarce resources. Exceptionally well written - highly praised by the Journal of the American Medical Association and the British Medical Journal. More on managerial decision making and managerial options in the face of financial pressure on resources. More focus on how to get better outcomes - how to improve quality rather than just how to measure quality. Updating throughout.