• The role of the private sector

The role of the private sector

The South African Health Review (SAHR), published by the Health Systems Trust seeks to provide a South African perspective on prevailing international public health issues, to stimulate debate and critical dialogue and to provide a platform for assessing progress in the health sector. The 2007 edition of the SAHR focuses on broad areas with respect to the role of the private health sector. Critical issues covered in the review include:

• assessment of the stewardship role of the government in the overall transformation process of the health sector
• review and analysis of health care financing and expenditure as well as recent trends in spending in the public and private health sectors
  
• overview of health information systems and the role played by intermediaries in facilitating the flow of patient information
  
• analysis of the health status of the South African workforce and health care provision in the workplace
• analysis and developments in the market and regulatory environment impacting on medicine pricing and access to medicines
• review of the impact of public-private partnerships on access to health care and health outcomes
• analysis of the private sectors response to HIV and AIDS, sexually transmitted infections and tuberculosis
  

The report argues that all stakeholders need to recognise the Ministry of Health’s responsibility to exercise stewardship over the entire health system, both public and private.Leaving the private sector to its own devices can have a negative impact on human resources in the public sector and exacerbate inequalities in access to care.A clear road map needs to be developed by government, in consultation with all relevant stakeholders, in terms of how it sees the ongoing development of the health system in a manner which harnesses the resources of both public and private sectors to the equitable benefit of all South Africans.

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