全球智库信息集成服务系统

Key Findings

1. Moving toward a properly designed insurance-based financing system in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq could improve access and efficiency in the delivery of care.
2. Phasing out physicians' simultaneous practice in private and public settings would improve efficiency and help realign physician incentives.
3. A primary care management information system would help health system leaders identify and address problems related to staffing, equipment, and services.
4. Train-the-trainer expansion of quality improvement efforts would engender patient safety improvements throughout the system.

After the fall of Saddam Hussein, the leaders of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq needed to rebuild the area's economic and social infrastructure. The former regime had intentionally and systematically underfunded all sectors — including health. With greater autonomy in 2008, the KRG moved to develop the region and improve its citizens' well-being. As part of that effort, it partnered with the RAND Corporation to study the region's situation, develop strategies, and help implement selected solutions. The work began with a focus on four areas — health, education, private-sector development, and employment — and later expanded to include the use of data to support policymaking and strategic planning. This research brief describes the RAND research team's health sector work.