South Africa Hosts first-ever Major Well being Care Convention

From November 14 to 17, 2023, the National Department of Health (NDOH), the National Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), Health Systems Trust and the  World Health Organization (WHO) hosted the first-ever South African Primary Health Care (SAPHC) Conference in East London. The theme for this monumental occasion was, “In direction of Common Well being Protection, Strengthening Major Well being Care: A complete of Authorities, complete of Society Method ” aimed to reinvigorate the nation’s dedication to the Primary Health Care (PHC) method, emphasizing its significance in attaining Universal Health Coverage (UHC) throughout the framework of the National Health Insurance (NHI) dispensation.

The roots of this convention are traced again to WHO’s 2008 World Health Report, which reaffirmed the imaginative and prescient of PHC as a set of values and rules guiding the event of well being methods. South Africa’s journey towards PHC rules advanced over the previous 30 years, remodeling the well being system from fragmentation to integration, marked by notable achievements equivalent to elevated entry to PHC providers and the endorsement of the NHI Coverage in 2017.

Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the Regional Director for WHO Africa, in her remarks pressured the significance and significance of this convention by stating that, “Common Well being Protection sits on the coronary heart of attaining Well being for All, and Major Well being Care is the automobile we have to speed up progress and succeed. The Major Well being Care method allows us to comprehensively meet the well being wants of the inhabitants from well being promotion and illness prevention to therapy, rehabilitation, and if wanted palliative care, and as shut as possible to folks’s on a regular basis atmosphere, no matter their monetary scenario.
Dr. Owen Kaluwa, WHO South Africa’s Nation Consultant, said that, “Major Well being Care is a complete method that gives accessible, inexpensive, and equitable well being care providers. It focuses on community-based well being providers, prevention, well being promotion, and addressing social determinants of well being. Major Well being Care is crucial for driving enhancements in well being care providers and outcomes, making it the muse of Common Well being Protection and a resilient well being system.”

Over 450 members attended the convention, drawing delegates from authorities, non-governmental and community-based organizations, civil society, academia, analysis establishments, the non-public sector, organized labor, and the complementary/different therapeutic sector.

Comprising informative and interactive plenary and breakaway periods, the convention featured worldwide audio system sharing profitable PHC implementation experiences. It supplied a platform for showcasing successes on the provincial, district, and sub-district ranges and inspired enter from different sectors on collaborative approaches.

The convention included tracks overlaying varied facets equivalent to UHC and NHI, integration of precedence packages into PHC, human sources for well being, know-how, and innovation, and addressing social determinants of well being.

As South Africa hosted this historic convention, it marked a big step towards constructing a greater future for all residents by way of the promotion and enhancement of Major Well being Care.a