Patients will be empowered to protect their own health, according to a new “people-centred” strategy that puts emphasis on prevention and healthy life choices.
The National Health Systems Strategy 2014-2020, released for consultation yesterday, starts off from the premise that patients are first and foremost people.
“It aims to reach people in the general community long before they become patients and enter a clinical healthcare sector or facility,” the report says.
The strategy – that should be finalised later this year – is set in the context of an ageing population that places a higher demand on healthcare.
It also factors in health problems prevalent in Malta – like obesity, diabetes and heart disease – that are often preventable through lifestyle choices.
The strategy recognises the reality that people have increasing expectations from the healthcare system, including higher standards, more individual attention and improved continuity of care.
Lack of these elements resulted in a situation where a third of the country’s total expenditure on healthcare came out of citizens’ pockets for private healthcare.
For this to be a success there has to be public ownership
To achieve its goals the strategy proposes the way forward on various levels. On a patient level, for example, it speaks about supporting individuals and families to be involved in the management of their health.
Then there are health practitioners, health organisations and the authorities. These levels back up the patient by, for example, facilitating information sharing, working to strengthen community care, efficiency and sustainability.
Director of the Health Information and Research Directorate, Neville Calleja, said the last umbrella health strategy had been issued in 1995 and was called Health Vision 2000.
Since then, Malta has faced a changing health environment – an ageing population brought about by increased life expectancy and low fertility rate.
Data showed that 22 per cent of the population was obese, 36 per cent was overweight, 20 per cent had a history of high blood pressure and nine per cent had a history of diabetes. Today’s health system also had a number of pressures that included the drive for greater efficiency, productivity and cost control.
In light of all this, Dr Calleja said the strategy was based on four objectives: ensuring health and well-being throughout life and in the community, accessibility to healthcare, continuity of care and sustainability.
Health Minister Godfrey Farrugia said the government was aware of the shortcomings of the health system – the main one being sustainability.
The strategy would look at strengthening primary healthcare, improving cost-effectiveness and ensuring patients had a choice from a public-private health mix.
“For this to be a success there has to be public ownership,” he said, adding that the document would be discussed during the first meeting of the new parliamentary health committee.
An ageing population places a higher demand on healthcare. Photo: Shutterstock