At the request of the Ministry of Health and Child Care, the FERDI is collaborating on the Mid-Term Evaluation of the Health Strategy in Zimbabwe.
Jacky Mathonnat (Emeritus Professor at the Clermont Auvergne University, Senior Fellow and Head of the Health Economics Program at FERDI) and Marlène Guillon (Associated Professor at the University of Montpellier) presented the results and the health policy implications of their study on the efficiency of district hospitals to the various directorates of the Ministry of Health and Child Care and to the health authorities of the Bindura province.
The study, which was also discussed with Zimbabwe's main external partners, highlights in particular the low average efficiency scores of these hospitals, their wide dispersion, reflecting a significant room for improvement in achieving better health outcomes with the resources used. The findings call inter alia for a reconsideration of the criteria for allocating staff in district hospitals as well as the modalities for implementing the policy of alleviating health user fees.
In addition, the study, which was based on monthly data for district hospital activities, highlighted dysfunctions in the computerized information system between the peripheral healthcare facilities and the Ministry of Health's centralized database. The Ministry is currently working to correct them.
Collaboration between the FERDI and the Ministry of Health will continue in the preparation for the implementation of the universal health coverage.
