Health officials, partners, and experts meet to strategise healthcare innovations in Southeast Asia

In a recent meeting led by the World Health Organisation (WHO), health officials strategised ways to scale-up innovations and improve quality integrated primary healthcare (PHC) in the Southeast Asia region.

Participants reviewed successful models from across the region, specifically exploring innovations related to national PHC integration in Indonesia, and collectively identified steps forward for improving both quality and integration in healthcare delivery.   

“Poor quality care is today, a greater barrier to reducing mortality in low-and middle-income countries than insufficient access,” said Saima Wazed, Regional Director, WHO Southeast Asia, in her inaugural address at the Regional Workshop on Innovations for Quality Integrated Primary Health Care. She emphasised that as a key aspect of quality, the integration of primary health services is crucial for providing seamless care throughout an individual’s life.

The WHO Southeast Asia region has long recognised primary healthcare as the foundation of robust health systems and broader development goals. In 2023, health ministers from the region reaffirmed their commitment to prioritising investments in primary healthcare. The South-East Asia Region Primary Health Care Strategy 2022-2030 outlines key actions to transform health systems through a PHC approach. 

According to the Lancet Commission, nearly 60% of the 8.6 million annual deaths from treatable conditions are linked to poor quality care. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the lack ofintegration of public health functions in PHC posed a significant bottleneck in prevention, preparedness, and response.

Wazed concluded: “My vision for our region is where people have access to quality healthcare, regardless of where they live, and regardless of their income or social status. I would like us to be a region which takes a holistic approach to health and wellbeing, where people are empowered – both physically and mentally – to achieve their full potential. I would like to shape a region which cares for all and strengthens and protects the most vulnerable who live in it.”

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