What U.S. Health Care Can Learn from Low-Cost Innovations Around the Globe
<p>The new issue of <em>Health Affairs</em> features Commonwealth Fund–supported research into frugal health care innovations and accountable care reforms from around the world. Learn how these initiatives may hold valuable lessons for the U.S. health system.</p>
<p><strong><a href="/publications/journal-article/2017/nov/global-lessons-frugal-innovation-improve-health-care-delivery">Global lessons in frugal innovation.</a></strong> As Imperial College London’s Yasser Bhatti and colleagues show, health care innovations don’t always originate in high-income, technologically advanced countries. Their study of telemedicine systems in Mexico and Singapore, health care delivery efficiencies in India, and community-worker programs in Kenya and Brazil demonstrates that it’s possible for resource-constrained nations to do more with less. The models that the researchers examined all seek to lower costs by changing where patients get their care, improving provider–patient communication, and altering care-seeking behaviors.</p>
<p><strong><a href="/publications/journal-article/2017/nov/improving-care-and-lowering-costs-evidence-and-lessons-global">Accountable care reforms in Germany, Nepal, and the Netherlands.</a> </strong>Countries around the world are experimenting with accountable care models as they try to improve patient care while simultaneously lowering costs. A team led by Duke University’s Mark McClellan analyzed reforms in three diverse countries to extract lessons for providers, payers, and policymakers. The researchers’ findings highlight the importance of deploying multidisciplinary care teams, having a common information technology infrastructure for identifying and managing high-risk patients, and developing evidence to guide the future course of reforms.<strong></strong></p>
<p><strong><a href="/publications/journal-article/2017/nov/accountable-care-reforms-improve-womens-and-childrens-health">Nepal’s progress in women’s and children’s health.</a> </strong>Despite being one of Asia’s poorest countries, Nepal has made significant progress over the past decade in reducing maternal and infant mortality. The country’s health ministry has partnered with the nonprofit Possible to deliver primary and secondary health care, relying on local community health workers to deliver integrated reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health care. Possible cofounder Duncan Maru, M.D., reports that the low-cost intervention has led to an increase in prenatal care, a higher number of births at health care facilities, and greater use of postpartum contraception.</p>
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/newsletters/ealerts/2017/nov/lessons-from-around-the-globe Read more