Fiscal sustainability challenge and the importance of primary healthcare

A wealth of evidence shows that primary healthcare (PHC) can provide healthcare in a more affordable, equitable, efficient, and cost-effective way and improve health outcomes. However, the development of PHC over the past four decades has been hampered by overinvestment in expensive tertiary care. T...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Luk, Sabrina Ching Yuen
Other Authors: Fong, Ben Yuk Fai
Format: Book Chapter
Language:English
Published: Springer 2020
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Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/143078
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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Summary:A wealth of evidence shows that primary healthcare (PHC) can provide healthcare in a more affordable, equitable, efficient, and cost-effective way and improve health outcomes. However, the development of PHC over the past four decades has been hampered by overinvestment in expensive tertiary care. The fiscal sustainability challenge facing health systems has driven political leaders and governments to place PHC at the centre of all efforts to achieve universal health coverage (UHC) and cope with increased demand for healthcare emergent from rapidly ageing population and the growing chronic disease burden. Reorienting health systems towards PHC requires strong political will and commitment as well as the unremitting efforts of governments to develop policies and set priorities for PHC and mobilise adequate funding to support PHC services. More efforts are needed to expand health screening services to reduce the risk of chronic illnesses and strengthen health promotion to make individuals take greater ownership of his/her own health.