WB/Chile: Improved Care for Chronic Diseases | WPN World People News

More than 13 million people will benefit from a new project for the health sector in Chile, funded by a US$80 million loan approved by the Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank on June 8th.

The Public Health Sector Support Project seeks to improve the efficiency and quality of public health services, in particular for patients with non-communicable diseases. In Chile, maternal-child health and communicable diseases are less prevalent today than chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, asthma or cancer, especially among the population above 65 years of age, which has grown from 6 to 11 percent of the total between 1990 and 2015.

A recent World Bank study identified that it would be possible to achieve significant efficiency improvements in Chile’s 29 Health Service Districts if new approaches were adopted for primary health, particularly for the prevention and adequate management of chronic cases. In average, premature mortality could be reduced by 8 to 13 percent if all Health Service Districts operated at the level of the most efficient ones.

“With this project the World Bank will contribute to the efforts towards strengthening governance mechanisms in the Ministry of Health. Refocusing of efforts and investments would achieve greater efficiency and health improvements among patients with non-communicable diseases,” said Alberto Rodríguez, World Bank Director for Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. “We hope it will have a positive impact on patients with complex needs, reducing intensive therapy requirements by offering improved prevention or earlier and more adequate management of these diseases”.

The project will finance the integration of public health services for patients with non-communicable diseases and chronic conditions. This includes establishing management units to closely monitor chronic cases in hospitals and health care services, telemedicine services to reach more patients at their homes and in remote areas and training for health care workers, as well as improving the efficiency of the acquisition of medicines and medical supplies in the public sector.

The program has US$80 million in financing. Completion of the project is expected by 2023. The loan has a maturity of 11 years, including a grace period of 10.5 years.

Source: World Bank