Research for universal health coverage: setting priorities for policy and systems research in Uganda
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Date
2021
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Global Health Action
Abstract
There is international consensus on the need for countries to work towards
achieving universal health coverage (UHC) whereby the population is given access to all
appropriate promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative services at affordable cost. The
World Health Organisation (2013) urges all countries to undertake research to customise UHC
within national development agendas.
Objective: To describe the process used to prioritise UHC within the health systems research
and development agenda in Uganda.
Methods: Two national consultative workshops were convened in May and August 2015 to
develop a UHC research agenda in Uganda. The participants included multisector representatives
from local, national, and international organisations. A participatory approach with
structured deliberations and multi-voting techniques was used. Stakeholders’ views were
analysed thematically according to health systems building blocks, and multi-voting was
used to assign priorities across themes and sub-themes. The priorities were further validated
and disseminated at national health sector meetings.
Results: Of the 80 invited stakeholders, 57 (71.3%) attended. The expressed priorities were: 1)
health workforce; 2) governance; 3) financing; 4) service delivery, and 5) community health.
The participants also recommended crosscutting research themes to address the social
determinants of health, multisectoral collaboration, and health system resilience to protect
against external shocks and disease epidemics.
Conclusion: Discussions that capture the diverse perspectives of stakeholders provide a way
of exploring UHC within health policy and systems development. In Uganda, attention should
be paid to the principal challenges of mobilising financial and technical capabilities for
research and strengthening the link between evidence generation and policy actions to
achieve UHC.
Description
Keywords
Priority setting, Health policy and systems research, Multivoting, Universal health coverage, Uganda
Citation
Freddie Ssengooba, Aloysius Ssennyonjo, Elizeus Rutebemberwa, Timothy Musila, Suzanne Namusoke Kiwanuka, Enid Kemari & Milly Nattimba (2021) Research for universal health coverage: setting priorities for policy and systems research in Uganda, Global Health Action, 14:1, 1956752, DOI: 10.1080/16549716.2021.1956752