Health systems interventions establish or modify governance (e.g., licensing of professionals), financial (e.g., health insurance mechanisms) and delivery (e.g., by whom care is provided) arrangements, and implementation strategies (e.g., strategies to change health provider behaviours) within health systems (which consist of “all organisations, people and actions whose primary intent is to promote, restore or maintain health”; see Box S1 for definitions of the terms used in this article). The focus of these interventions is to strengthen health systems in their own right or to get cost-effective programmes and technologies (e.g., drugs and vaccines) to those who need them. Decisions regarding health systems strengthening, including the development of recommendations by policy makers, require evidence on the effectiveness of these interventions, as well as many other forms of evidence. For example, in assessing potential policy options, reviews of economic evaluations and of qualitative studies of stakeholders' views regarding these options might be important (Table S1). Such evidence helps to address questions such as the cost-effectiveness of these options and which options are seen as appropriate by stakeholders.
展开▼
