What we do
The ‘On-call’ Facility for International Healthcare Comparisons
was set up in October 2005 to provide timely, targeted, relevant and concise
information on a range of health policy themes from Europe, Canada, Australia
and New Zealand to inform health policy developments in England.
The Facility brings together experts from 13 countries (the International
Healthcare Comparisons Network). It is coordinated by a research
team based at the London School of
Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and operates closely with
the European Observatory
on Health Systems and Policies and the project’s Steering
Committee. The Facility is funded by the Department
of Health (DH). *
Our work focuses on comparative analysis to facilitate learning from the experience of other health systems as an input to policy development by the Department of Health.
We respond to specific requests for information on international experience
in areas ranging from health sector capacity planning to activity-based
financing of hospitals.The themes we work on
are selected in close consultation with the Department of Health and reflect
both the Department’s interests and a specific theme’s relevance
in other countries. The information we provide includes in-depth analyses
and rapid-response-type briefings based on a quick survey of our experts.
* Outputs reflect the views of the authors and not necessarily those of
the Department of Health.
Background
Health systems vary widely across high-income countries, with differences in organisation, financing, types and amounts of resources used and health outcomes achieved.
Yet, all countries have something in common. They share similar goals, to ensure accessible health care of high quality that is responsive, affordable and financially sustainable, and they face similar challenges, such as rising health care costs coupled with technological advances, demographic changes and increasing public expectations.
Given these common concerns, there is growing interest in the possibility of learning from the experience of others and drawing lessons on improving health system performance through comparative analysis. International comparisons offer a means of sharing experience, enabling mutual learning, cross-fertilisation and, possibly, policy transfer.
However, comparisons can be problematic: definitions vary and contexts differ (for instance, what is a hospital bed?). Superficial exercises may lead to misinterpretation of observed phenomena and misleading conclusions. Many comparisons are based on routinely-collected data, but these often reflect what can be counted rather than what is important. And data are not always up to date.
What is called for is a timely and sensitive approach to comparisons that is based on an in-depth understanding of the nature of health systems and the settings in which they are embedded and takes full account of context.
