Risks and Opportunities of Reforms Putting Primary Care in the Driver's Seat Comment on "Governance, Government, and the Search for New Provider Models"

• Published in: International journal of health policy and management Vol. 5; no. 8; pp. 511 - 513
• Main Author: Back, Monica Andersson
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Iran Kerman University of Medical Sciences 01.08.2016
• Subjects: Arbetslivsstudier; Delivery of Health Care; Evaluation; Forecasts and trends; Government; Government Regulation; Health administration; Health Care Reform; Health Care Service and Management, Health Policy and Services and Health Economy; Health Policy; Health System Governance; Humans; Hälso- och sjukvårdsorganisation, hälsopolitik och hälsoekonomi; Market trend/market analysis; Motivation; Ownership; Primary Care Reform; Primary Health Care; Social Work; Socialt arbete; Sweden; Swedish Primary Health Center; Work Sciences; Sweden; Primary Care Reform; Swedish Primary Health Center; Health System Governance
• ISSN: 2322-5939; 2322-5939
• DOI: 10.15171/ijhpm.2016.64

Recognizing the advantages of primary care as a means of improving the entire health system, this text comments on reforms of publicly funded primary health centers, and the rapid development of private for-profit providers in Sweden. Many goals and expectations are connected to such reforms, which equally require critical analyses of scarce resources, professional trust/motivation and business logic in the wake of freedom and control of ownership and management. In line with Saltman and Duran, this article calls for research and a methodologically developed approach to capture everyday practice in-depth and how regulation, market incentives and patient demands are met by professionals and primary care leaders.