Meeting on Health Systems Strengthening and Primary Health Care
Summary
A two-day Meeting on Health Systems Strengthening and Primary Health Care was held in Manila from 5 to 6 August 2008. A team of 11 expert advisers, seven representatives/observers from partner agencies, and a Secretariat of 28 WHO staff participated in two days of dynamic interactions. The health systems observatory was discussed as well each of the six building blocks of a health system, always keeping in mind that blocks are interrelated. The conclusions and recommendations on the Asia Pacific Observatory on Health Systems and Policies included that there was a demand and a need for such a function, that start-up should begin soon, and that there should be an initial emphasis on high quality products with selected policy briefs and country studies being appropriate initial products. Cross cutting themes in the six building blocks were identified which include capacity building, evidence, promoting dialogue, technical assistance, equity, and standardization and norms. It was also concluded that a general forum such as this was useful to provide health systems advice in a holistic fashion, but there may also be needs for more focused consultations on specific topics. Detailed conclusions and recommendations are in the text of the report and also compiled in Annex 6.