Date: November 14, 2008
Time: 12:00 NN - 3:00 PN
Venue: Metro Pacific Function Room, 3/F AIM Conference Center Manila, Makati City
Public-Private Partnership (PPP) toward Healthcare for All
The AIM Policy Center, in collaboration with Novartis Philippines Healthcare, Inc., convened a roundtable discussion (RTD) entitled Public-Private Partnership (PPP) toward Healthcare for All slated on 14 November 2008 at the Metro Pacific Function Room of AIM Conference Center Manila. The RTD was graced by prominent participants from different government institutions and top level heads from the private sector, various medical associations, as well as premier academic organizations.
Dr. Federico Macaranas, Executive Director of the AIM Policy Center, welcomed the guests as he briefly gave an overview of the discussion, specifically, the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework. The PPP, as he noted, is all about sharing objectives, taking in consideration both risks and rewards. It is not only one “P” exposed to risk and the other “P” getting the rewards. He ended his presentation by showing health-related data culled from the World Competitiveness Yearbook, an annual publication prepared by the AIM Policy Center for the Philippine data. Based on the rankings, our country lags behind compared to its other Southeast Asian neighbours, telling us that there is indeed big room for a PPP to pull us up in the competitiveness landscape.
Next to present was Mr. Alexandre Jetzer, member of the Board of Directors of Novartis, on the Global Healthcare Trends, Public-Private Partnerships and Innovation. Mr. Jetzer provided recent trends on global healthcare, highlighting that the healthcare environment is now changing along with the patient and customer needs. Given these challenges, he pointed out that Novartis has come up with an excellent portfolio in addressing patient needs, constantly innovating to develop new product lines. As most of these innovations stem from cooperation, the importance of a PPP approach should then be recognized. Mr. Jetzer further said that Novartis is open to opportunities and particularly keen on enhancing a country’s R&D potential.
From a public sector perspective, Ms. Maylene Beltran, Director IV of the Bureau of International Health Cooperation of the Department of Health (DOH), presented on Reforming the Philippine Health System: A Race toward MDGs. She underlined that DOH has already set national health goals in attaining the millennium development goals or the MDGs and these are as follows: better health outcomes, more responsive health system, and equitable health care financing. One of their flagship programs for strategic reforms was the FOURmula One for Health (F1). It was implemented solely for improving the financing, regulating, and delivery of health services for the Filipino poor.
Finally, it was indispensable to solicit insights from Ambassador Cesar Bautista as he is the Co-Chair for the Private Sector of the National Competitiveness Council (NCC) and NCC is the best example of a public-private partnership approach in the local setting. Ambassador Bautista believed that even with the most well-meaning leader, it would be very difficult to come out with a revolutionary strategy without the private sector leading and helping the national government. It should be noted that the private sector is the driver while the government is the enabler.
During the open forum, the following specifics were discussed:
- Best Practices/initiatives for PPP approach for each sector
- Advantages of Singapore vis-à-vis the Philippines in placing R&D outfit on clinical test and health and wellness
- Other PPP potential areas
In summary, the discussion successfully increased the breath and depth of analysis on the public-private sector partnership approach as a driving force for improving the healthcare delivery system for all. As Dr. Macaranas emphasized, PPP is like any conjugal relationship: you share the blessings and risks of the union in the realization of a common goal, i.e., the effective delivery of service to the public.