Project description:Increased private finance can accelerate forest and landscape restoration globally. Here we conduct semi-structured interviews with asset managers, corporations and restoration finance experts to examine incentives and barriers to private restoration finance. Next, we assess what type of restoration projects and regions appeal to different private funders and how current financial barriers can be overcome. We show that market incentives for corporations include meeting net-emission-reduction commitments, impact and sustainable branding opportunities, and promotion of sustainability in supply chains. Conversely, asset managers face stronger barriers to investing in restoration as it is deemed a high-risk, unknown investment with low profitability. We find that investment finance biases towards restoration projects in low-risk areas and corporate finance towards areas with business presence. Both private finance types tend to omit projects focusing on natural regeneration. Through expanded and diversified markets for restoration benefits, strong public policy support and new financial instruments, private finance for restoration can be scaled for a wider variety of restoration projects in more diverse geographical contexts.
Project description:BackgroundThere is little known about how payer status impacts clinical outcomes in a universal single-payer system such as the UK National Health Service (NHS). The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between payer status (private or public) and clinical outcomes following cardiac surgery from NHS providers in England.MethodsThe National Adult Cardiac Surgery Audit (NACSA) registry was interrogated for patients who underwent adult cardiac surgery in England from 2009 to 2018. Information on socioeconomic status were provided by linkage with the Iteration of the English Indices of Deprivation (IoD). The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes included incidence of in-hospital postoperative cerebrovascular accident (CVA), renal dialysis, sternal wound infection, and re-exploration. To assess whether payer status was an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality, binomial generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) were fitted along with 17 items forming the EuroSCORE and the IoD domains.FindingsThe final sample consisted of 280,209 patients who underwent surgery in 31 NHS hospitals in England from 2009 to 2018. Of them, 5,967 (2.1%) and 274,242 (97.9%) were private and NHS payers respectively. Private payer status was associated with a lower risk of in-hospital mortality (OR 0.79; 95%CI 0.65 - 0.97;P = 0.026), CVA (OR 0.77; 95%CI 0.60 - 0.99; P = 0.039), need for re-exploration (OR 0.84; 95%CI 0.72 - 0.97; P = 0.017) and with non-significant lower risk of dialysis (OR 0.84; 95%CI 0.69 - 1.02; P = 0.074). Private payer status was found to be independently associated with lower risk of in-hospital mortality in the elective subgroup (OR 0.76; 95%CI 0.61 - 0.96; P = 0.020) but not in the non-elective subgroup (OR 1.01; 95%CI 0.64 - 1.58; P = 0.976).InterpretationIn conclusion, using a national database, we have found evidence of significant beneficial effect of payer status on hospital outcomes following cardiac surgery in favour of private payers regardless their socioeconomic factors.
Project description:Papua New Guinea (PNG) has a significant malaria burden, is resource constrained, and has isolated populations with limited access to health services. Home-based management is a key element of the national program that supports strategies of early detection, diagnosis and treatment. We describe the epidemiology of malaria near Lake Kutubu in the Southern Highlands Province through reported data on suspected and confirmed malaria in patients accessing public health facilities or using a novel, incentivised, social marketing approach for malaria treatment at the village level. Monthly case data reported by nine health facilities and 14 village-based providers, known as Marasin Stoa Kipas (MSK), were extracted from outpatient registers and MSK malaria case forms. Descriptive statistics of diagnostic use, monthly incidence, test positivity rate and species distribution were estimated. Summary statistics of service delivery demonstrate patient access and diagnostic coverage in program areas. From May 2005 to September 2013, 15,726 individuals were tested with either rapid diagnostic test and/or microscopy at health facilities, and 42% had a positive result for malaria (n = 6604); of these 67.1% (n = 4431) were positive for P. falciparum (alone or mixed) and 32.9% were positive for non-P. falciparum species (alone or mixed). From October 2007 to September 2013, 9687 individuals were tested with either RDT and/or microscopy at MSK sites and 44.2% (n = 4283) tested positive for malaria; of these, 65.3% (n = 2796) were positive for P. falciparum, while 34.7% (n = 1487) were positive for non-P. falciparum species. Up to April 2010 there was an intermittent and upward trend in the reported incidence of all species of confirmed malaria, reaching 50 per 1000 population per month for both sites combined, followed by a steady decline to four per 1000 population per month in 2013, with P. vivax the most common infection. This study is the most recent longitudinal overview of malaria in the Southern Highlands since 2003. It outlines patient access to a community-based model of care. The analysis shows changes in health facility versus MSK use, a strongly decreasing trend in incidence of confirmed malaria from 2010 to 2013, and a shift from predominantly P. falciparum to P. vivax infection.
Project description:BackgroundThe intention to more effectively mobilise and integrate the capabilities of the community pharmacy workforce within primary care is clearly stated within National Health Service (NHS) England policy. The Pharmacy Integration Fund (PhIF) was established in 2016 to support the development of clinical pharmacy practice in a range of primary care settings, including community pharmacy.ObjectiveThis study sought to determine how PhIF funded learning pathways for post-registration pharmacists and accuracy checking pharmacy technicians enabled community pharmacy workforce transformation, in what circumstances, and why.MethodsRealist evaluation. We identified two main programme theories underpinning the PhIF programme and tested these theories against data collected through 41 semi-structured qualitative interviews with community pharmacist and pharmacy technician learners, educational supervisors, and community pharmacy employers.ResultsThe data supported the initial programme theories and indicated that the learning pathway for post-registration pharmacists had also provided opportunity for pharmacists to develop and consolidate their clinical skills before pursuing an independent prescribing qualification. Employer support was a key factor influencing learner participation, whilst employer engagement was mediated by perceptions of value expectancy and clarity of purpose. The study also highlights the influence of contextual factors within the community pharmacy setting on opportunities for the application of learning in practice.ConclusionsWhen designing and implementing workforce transformation plans and funded service opportunities that require the engagement of a diverse range of private, for-profit businesses within a mixed economy setting, policymakers should consider the contextual factors and mechanisms influencing participation of all stakeholder groups.