Washington, D.C., (PAHO/WHO) July 2017. - The Department of Health Systems and Services of the Pan American Health Organization (HSS) met in Mexico City to exchange countries' experiences on the evolution and transformation of health systems in the Region of the Americas, and to consolidate PAHO's processes for cooperation toward Universal Health in the context of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Three years after PAHO Member States approved the Strategy for Universal Access to Health and Universal Health Coverage (Universal Health), 70 professionals from 28 countries of the Americas participated the three days meeting and discussed the following topics:- Countries' experiences in transforming health systems toward universal health
- Expanding equitable access to comprehensive, quality, people- and community-centered health services
- Strengthening health system leadership and governance
- Human resources for universal health
- Medicines and other health technologies: Cooperation to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of health systems
- Increasing and improving financing with equity and efficiency, and advancing toward the elimination of direct payments that constitute a barrier to access at the point of service, and
- Coordination to strengthen HSS technical cooperation.
The meeting was chaired by James Fitzgerald, Director of Health Systems and Services Department and Gerry Eijkemans, PAHO/WHO Representative in Mexico. "This is an excellent opportunity to think and reflect on the strategy to address the challenges in public health and health systems throughout the region of the Americas", said Fitzgerald.
The outcomes of the discussion will guide HSS work towards Universal Health in the Region for the next few years, aligned with the PAHO Strategic Plan and the SDGs. "We will be scaling up our actions in the evolution and transformation of health systems, consolidating existing work priorities and incorporating new areas for action", told Fitzgerald during the closing remarks of the meeting.
Relevant links
Web page Health Systems and Services Department
CE160/18 - Strategy on Human Resources for Universal Access to Health and Universal Health Coverage
CD55/11, Rev.1 - Health of Migrants
CD55/10, Rev.1- Access and Rational Use of Strategicand High-cost Medicines and Other Health Technologies
CD55/9- Resilient Health Systems
