Abekah-Nkrumah Gordon, Abor Patience Aseweh, Addai Frimpong Kingsley, Martey Maureen M, Asrat Sofonias Getachew, Kasolo Francis Chisaka
University of Ghana Business School, Accra, Ghana
University of Ghana Business School, Accra, Ghana.
BMJ Glob Health. 2024 Dec 18;8(Suppl 5):e014217. doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2023-014217.
There is a growing literature on the significance of private sector engagement and collaboration for optimal response to health emergencies. The current study examines how the private sector was engaged by the Ghanaian government to implement effectively the national COVID-19 emergency response.
The study drew on a qualitative research design, interviewing 20 respondents in 15 unique organisations. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using a thematic analytical approach.
The findings of the study suggest that the government demonstrated leadership in mobilising, resourcing, and collaborating with the private health sector to deliver its pandemic response via a defined emergency response plan, a coordinated pandemic response structure and a robust platform for information gathering and sharing. However, the government fell short of providing the enabling environment for the private health sector to expand their capacity to meet increased demand for health services during the pandemic. There were also challenges related to the over concentration of resources in the public health response and national level structures to the detriment of clinical care and sub-national level structures. Generally, the findings also indicate a fragmented private health sector that is not only unattractive for the government to engage and collaborate with, but also weak in terms of capacity (financial and human resources) to partner government and respond to any major health emergency.
There is a need for policymakers to put in place an appropriate policy framework that will help in organising, engaging and collaborating with private health entities. The gaps identified and lessons learnt from implementing the pandemic response should be addressed as a matter of urgency to improve the readiness of Ghana's health system for future health emergencies.
关于私营部门参与和合作对于最佳应对卫生紧急情况的重要性，相关文献日益增多。本研究考察了加纳政府如何促使私营部门有效实施国家新冠疫情应急响应。
本研究采用定性研究设计，对15个不同组织的20名受访者进行了访谈。访谈进行了录音、转录，并采用主题分析法进行分析。
研究结果表明，政府在动员、提供资源以及与私营卫生部门合作以通过明确的应急响应计划、协调的疫情应对结构和强大的信息收集与共享平台来应对疫情方面发挥了领导作用。然而，政府未能为私营卫生部门提供有利环境，以扩大其能力来满足疫情期间对卫生服务不断增加的需求。在公共卫生应对和国家层面结构中资源过度集中，而损害了临床护理和地方层面结构，这也存在挑战。总体而言，研究结果还表明私营卫生部门分散零碎，不仅对政府缺乏吸引力，难以参与合作，而且在与政府合作以及应对任何重大卫生紧急情况方面的能力（资金和人力资源）薄弱。
政策制定者需要制定适当的政策框架，以帮助组织、参与并与私营卫生实体合作。应将在实施疫情应对中发现的差距和吸取的教训作为紧迫事项加以解决，以提高加纳卫生系统对未来卫生紧急情况的应对能力。
