The World Health Organization (WHO) has unveiled a new technical product aimed at guiding countries in health systems recovery following disruptive events. This initiative is designed to leverage lessons learned from past and ongoing shocks to not only restore health systems to their pre-shock state, but also to address pre-existing and ongoing gaps, weaknesses, and inequities.
Health system recovery presents a unique opportunity for substantial improvements. By facilitating continuous and systematic improvement, countries can achieve better performance and resilience in their health systems. This approach aligns with the broader goals of universal health coverage, health security, and socioeconomic development.
The newly released guideline is intended to support national and subnational health authorities, WHO, other United Nations agencies, technical partners, and donors. It provides a framework for effective planning and prioritization of health system recovery, ensuring that these efforts are mainstreamed into broader health system strengthening and reform processes. While the guidelines are developed for a recovery context, they are adaptable to other health system strengthening initiatives that address recognized gaps in health system function even outside of a shock event.
By prioritizing and mainstreaming health system recovery, WHO aims to support countries in building more resilient health systems capable of withstanding future disruptions and ensuring continuous improvement in health outcomes globally.
About the UHC Partnership
The UHC Partnership is one of the core components of the WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care. It was created by WHO and its development partners in 2011 to bridge the gap between global commitments on UHC and country implementation by providing technical expertise to reinforce the leadership of ministries of health in building equitable, resilient, and effective health systems based on primary health care. Today, more than 145 health policy advisers are in the field working with WHO offices, national authorities, and partners to foster policy dialogue and support countries in a wide range of areas including strategic planning, health governance, harmonization and alignment, health financing, health workforce, medicines and medical products, vaccines, gender, equity, human rights, mental health, noncommunicable diseases, among others.
The UHC Partnership operates in over 125 countries, representing over 3 billion people. It is supported and funded by Belgium, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Japan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and WHO.
