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60 seconds with…Dr Yogan Pillay

By Madeleine Stewart Sep. 26, 2018

iDSI caught up with Dr Yogan Pillay, Deputy Director-General for Communicable and Non-communicable Disease, Prevention, Treatment and Rehabilitation in the National Department of Health in South Africa, ahead of the Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR) symposium in Liverpool next month. 1. You are a panel member in the sub-session, ‘Design of Health Benefit Packages’ during the HSR 2018 …

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Five key points on Modicare: India’s soon to be rolled-out National Health Insurance Scheme

By Laura Downey Sep. 17, 2018

As India gets ready for the introduction of Modicare, reported to be the largest government-sponsored insurance scheme in the world with a target population of 500 million, we highlight five key points about the revolutionary health scheme. 1. The poor are the primary beneficiaries of this scheme Modicare’ s predecessor, the government-run health insurance programme Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), …

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60 seconds with… Dr Justice Nonvignon

By Madeleine Stewart Sep. 14, 2018

iDSI caught up with Dr Justice Nonvignon, a senior lecturer and health economist at the University of Ghana, ahead of a special event in Accra later this month that focuses on sustainable policies for effective resource allocation in Africa. As part of the two-day event, Justice will lead on a workshop session highlighting international case studies of Health Technology Assessment …

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A clear vision for India: cataracts HTA study sets example for a more cost-effective National Health Protection Scheme

By Laura Downey Aug. 13, 2018

The Health Technology Assessment in India (HTAIN) Secretariat has published its first Health Technology Assessment study, assessing the cost-effectiveness of intraocular lens replacement for cataracts. Following approval by the Technical Appraisal Committee, this pioneering study will inform the ophthalmology surgical packages reimbursable under the new National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS), which is set to provide healthcare coverage for over 500 …

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Using service delivery platforms to strengthen health systems

By Peter Smith Aug. 7, 2018

The call for ‘health system strengthening’ (HSS) has become something of a mantra in global health circles in recent years. But what do we mean by HSS and how might policymakers go about enacting it? My colleagues Dr Katharina Hauck, Dr Ranjeeta Thomas and I are working on an iDSI project where we take the position that an important form …

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iDSI delivers workshop on supporting evidence generation for differentiated care models for ART delivery in Kenya

By Y-Ling Chi Jul. 26, 2018

A two day workshop focusing on differentiated care models (DCM) was delivered by iDSI, the National AIDS Control Council (NACC) and the National AIDS and STI Control Program (NASCOP) in Nairobi this month. The workshop was attended by 23 delegates representing NACC and NASCOP, as well partners from the Global Fund to fight against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; the Centre …

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First capacity building for HTA in India workshop kicks off in Delhi

Jul. 24, 2018

Health Technology Assessment (HTA) is an important tool for prioritising health resources in India’s journey towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC), this was one of the key take-home messages from a workshop delivered by iDSI this month. The workshop was the first in a series that are designed to help build capacity for undertaking HTA in India; and come as the …

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Capacity building for Health Technology Assessment in India: strengthening foundations for evidence-informed priority setting

By Laura Downey Jul. 2, 2018

iDSI is providing technical assistance to build essential capacity in the generation and utilisation of evidence to ensure the best value from every rupee spent in the Indian health system. This comes as the government of India has committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Universal Health Coverage by 2030. Setting the right priorities to maximise value of health …

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Innovative Family Health Centres in Kerala support hypertension detection and control

Jun. 1, 2018

iDSI staff visited Family Health Centres in Kerala to learn how the Centre’s activities are helping to improve hypertension detection and control in India. The visit formed part of an initiative led by the State Government of Kerala to increase the detection of new cases of hypertension through opportunistic blood pressure screening of adults at primary care facilities (known as …