New Investments for the Joint Learning Network Will Strengthen and Expand Work on Universal Health Coverage
February 1, 2017
PATH was awarded $4M to support the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage—a community of health policymakers working to address barriers to achieving universal health coverage in their countries by working together to solve common challenges in implementing health care reform. The goal of the investment by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is to revitalize and expand the technical work of the network, in addition to enhancing cross-technical coordination as well as country coordination and engagement.
The two-year grant was awarded to PATH, which will provide sub-grants to other network partners, including the World Bank, Results for Development, Qualis Health, Ariadne Labs and Aceso Global.
“We believe in the value the Joint Learning Network provides for countries to share experiences with each other as they work towards Universal Health Coverage,” said Caren Althauser, consulting services lead of PATH’s Digital Health Solutions team and the technical facilitator of the JLN Information Technology (IT) Initiative. “We are excited to continue our work with the IT Initiative, where country members collaborate with cross-country peers to co-develop new knowledge products and guidance for using IT to accelerate the implementation and scale of national health payer or insurance programs.”
The award will support the following JLN focus areas:
- Information Technology Initiative, led by PATH, which helps IT professionals from ministries of health and national health payers share knowledge and tools to support the implementation of national health coverage schemes.
- People-centered and integrated care (PCIC), led by Ariadne Labs and Qualis Health, will explore this emerging care model that ultimately aims to improve the effectiveness of health service delivery — a key component of universal health coverage — which aims to provide the right service, at the right place, at the right time and at a cost affordable to society and individuals. A new Learning Exchange, led by Aceso Global, will focus specifically on the role of vertical coordination within a PCIC care model.
- Provider Payment Mechanism Initiative, led by Results for Development, which addresses provider payment, a priority topic for countries thinking more deliberately about how to use payments to support the management and delivery of health services, or integrated service delivery.
- Stronger country-level coordination and governance of the JLN is key to aligning technical priorities for international joint learning with the in-country demand, ensuring that the work of the JLN is communicated and used by the relevant stakeholders within the country, and ensuring continued demand and interest in joint learning activities. The World Bank as a founding partner of the JLN, will lead the effort to intensify and scale up in-country support for JLN member countries by leveraging and building upon the existing World Bank resources, teams and activities.
“The strength and sustainability of the Joint Learning Network lies in its country ownership. These funds will be used to strengthen country coordination and engagement efforts and expand our technical work to help countries advance universal health coverage,” said Amanda Folsom, senior program director at R4D, which serves as the network coordinator. “This investment from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation demonstrates continued confidence in the work of the Joint Learning Network.”
As a key next step, the partners plan to undergo a scoping and design phase in close collaboration with network member countries in order to better understand country demand in each area of work.
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About PATH
PATH is the leader in global health innovation. An international nonprofit organization, PATH saves lives and improves health, especially among women and children. PATH accelerates innovation across five platforms—vaccines, drugs, diagnostics, devices, and system and service innovations—that harness our entrepreneurial insight, scientific and public health expertise, and passion for health equity. By mobilizing partners around the world, PATH takes innovation to scale, working alongside countries primarily in Africa and Asia to tackle their greatest health needs. With these key partners, PATH delivers measurable results that disrupt the cycle of poor health.
About the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage
The Joint Learning Network is an innovative, country-driven network of practitioners and policymakers from around the globe who co-develop global knowledge products that help bridge the gap between theory and practice to extend coverage to more than 3 billion people.
About Results for Development
Results for Development is a global nonprofit organization working with partners in more than 55 countries to find new ways to help people in developing countries escape poverty and reach their full potential. We apply fresh thinking and rigor to emerging and stubborn development challenges — particularly within the fields of health, education and governance — and we pioneer and advance creative, high-impact solutions. We do this by conducting analysis and generating evidence that helps to inform and influence decision-makers; by building platforms and networks that connect people and ideas; by providing direct support to local change agents; and by combining these approaches to deliver meaningful and lasting results.
About Ariadne Labs
Ariadne Labs is a global leader in health systems innovation, fostering a new discipline of research and discovery for better patient care. A joint center of Brigham & Women’s Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, we are a team of distinguished public health physicians, scientists, researchers working to address failures in healthcare systems at critical moments in people’s lives everywhere. We design simple but powerful tools for childbirth, surgery, and serious illness that spread around the world and reach millions of people. To successfully deliver on this work, our program teams collaborate with specialized platform teams, including experts in the fields of informatics, statistics, implementation science, monitoring and evaluation, quality improvement, and program management, to support our diverse research objectives.
About Aceso Global
Aceso Global is a Washington, DC based nonprofit that provides strategic advisory services and cutting-edge research to strengthen healthcare systems and achieve affordable, high quality healthcare in emerging markets. We leverage a global network of experts to advise governments, development banks, foundations and the private sector in diagnosing problems, devising solutions, and creating value in healthcare systems and provider networks. The Aceso Global team has deep experience in integrated care, hospital management, quality improvement and health financing and governance. Team members have worked extensively in each of these areas with governments and other stakeholders in East Asia, South Asia and Latin America.
About Qualis Health
Qualis Health is a leading population health management organization, improving care delivery and patient outcomes by working with clients throughout the public and private sectors to advance the quality, efficiency and value of healthcare for millions of people every day. We deliver solutions that enable our partners to transform the care they provide, with a focus on process improvement, care management and effective use of health information technology. We drive practice transformation within healthcare delivery systems to optimize integrated care, applying evidence-based models that have been widely implemented in the U.S. and beyond.
About the World Bank Group
The World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It comprises five closely associated institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA), which together form the World Bank; the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each institution plays a distinct role in the mission to fight poverty and improve living standards for people in the developing world. For more information, please visit www.worldbank.org, www.miga.org, and www.ifc.org.
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