• Contracting out of health care provision

Contracting out of health care provision

This Brookings Institution report assesses the impact of contracting out the management of government health services to NGOs in Cambodia. The contracts specified targets for maternal and child health service improvement. Contractors were required to provide all preventative, promotional and curative health care services mandated for a district, and were responsible for services at district hospitals, sub-district health centres and remote health posts. The paper finds that contracting programme caused large increases in the services outcomes targeted by it: receipt of vitamin A by children under 5 was increased by 42 per cent and receipt of antenatal care by pregnant women increased by 36 per cent.

The report also finds evidence of improved management of government health centres particularly in the availability of 24-hour service, the actual presence of staff scheduled to be there, supervisory visits, and the presence of supplies and equipment. The programme led individuals to reduce visits to untrained service providers such as drug sellers and traditional healers. The authors conclude that overall, the contracting project was very effective in improving service delivery in the project area.

• Full text of document
• Publisher details
• Send to a friend