REPORT:  WORKSHOP A4

Primary health care reform in the Americas: implications for human resources development and life long learning

 

Coordinators: Yves Talbot and Monica Riutort

 

Issues/tasks

 

To explore selected national experiences in primary health care training. It aims to develop specific strategies and indicators for monitoring effectiveness in order to improve training for primary health care researchers according to the perspective of lifelong learning.

 

Main perspectives

 

·        20 years after Alma-Ata declaration we are still facing large inequities in health.

·        Much of the reform in health systems has been financially driven, leaving out high percentage of population with limited health care services.

·        Primary Health care as a core strategy for providing services to the population has been absent in the reform process.

·        Many countries in The Americas still define Primary Health Care as basis health care services.

 

Pinpoints

 

• The following countries presented their experiences with health reform: Canada, Colombia Argentina, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Cuba and Brazil.
• The Pan-American Health Organization presented the organization view on Primary health care reform in The Americas and its implication for human resources development.
• The Latin American Association of Social Medicine (ALAMES, in Spanish) explained the work of this organization and its commitment to social medicine defined as the area of knowledge and social and political action on the phenomena of illness and health in human societies.
• Two communities experiences in Primary Health Care training were presented: The work of volunteers of the Colombian Red Cross in the Caribbean Coast of this country and the training of primary health care teams in Mato Grosso, Brazil. These presentations were complimented with the expertise in this area developed by the School of Public Health of the University of Costa Rica.
• All presenters gave particular emphasis to the interface between clinical practice and community participation. As well as the importance of having national primary health care policies and a multi level advocacy strategy to support policy on human resources development primary health care delivery.

 

Conclusions and Recommendations

 This workshop has come up with the following conclusions and recommendation

 

 

1. To establish a primary health care and adult education-working group in ICAE to continue the work started in the sixth assembly. The first task of this group will be reaffirmed the principles of Alma Ata.
2. Incorporate in the training of Human resources development in (professional, manager and others) an adult education perspective

 

Action:  bring together health and social sciences department, with adult education in the planning of human resources development in the planning human resources development in primary health care.

 

3. The perspective of health as a human right must be incorporated in all faces of human resources training.

 

4. In the process of training professional we must help them develop a respectful understanding of the community’s own knowledge of health and the logic of people and community daily events.

 

5. Primary health care workers must have a specialized training program to meet the needs of their communities.

 

6.      The initial step of the human resources development in primary health care must start with the workers already in the field to develop a cadre of role models essential for the development of quality primary care services and educational programs. Such training models must reflect the

 

multidisciplinary and team approach essential to the delivery of primary health care.