Delivery of health services is underpinned by a framework of health policies and other health system elements. Undergraduate Public Health students aspiring to the roles of health professionals need to know about these policies and about the process of policy making so that they can understand why a policy is what it is, and how to engage in the policy making process. It is also essential that students understand the relevance of health system strengthening for Strong health systems prevent, detect, and respond to deadly diseases, thereby preventing outbreaks from becoming epidemics, promote the well-being of people, and save lives. But when health systems break down, as we saw during the tragic Ebola epidemic in West Africa, their failure threatens global security and pushes more people into the depths of extreme poverty.  The aim of this module is to provide Public Health students as future health practitioners with a comprehensive understanding of the major components of national and global health systems and how health policy is created to adapt and reform these systems. Students will explore relevant policy theories, stakeholders and policy actors and processes that address major health policy challenges.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this module, students should be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

• Define a health system using the WHO building blocks and the control knob frameworks
• Outline the key structural components of national health systems
• Compare and contrast the WHO building blocks framework for health system and the control knob framework.
• Describe the tactics used by different interest groups to make their voices heard.
• Explain how key policy levers - financing, regulation, organization of healthcare delivery and financing, payment mechanisms - are linked to each other and to health policy goals.
• Explain how an issue get into the policy agenda

§  Discuss the elements of health system and their functions

• Demonstrate an understanding of the policy process

§  Evaluate the role of the policy making process.

§  Compose arguments on health systems and policy development

• Recognize key current issues on the Rwandan and global health policy agendas
• Discuss the relevance of health system strengthening and this  can be done in a given case

Skills and Competences

§  Analyse the structure of their own health system.

§  Apply policy theories to contemporary health policy issues

§  Analyse policy stakeholders and their policy interests.

• Evaluate the implications of the political context of policy development
• Carry out a diagnostic analysis of a health policy concern leading to proposals for reform/change in levers, using the control knobs framework
• Analyze a health system and propose strategies for its strengthening

Attitudes

• Critically appraise existing health policies.
• Participate in the health system strengthening