Critical issues have emerged across healthcare systems, with the focus of health equity and health inequalities being of the highest priority. Health inequalities result in increased morbidity, decreased life expectancy and result in unwarranted variation across systems.
THE IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH EQUITY AND TACKLING HEALTH INEQUALITIES
Health equity is the most important factor in addressing the challenges of the future.1 Realising the right to health means systematically identifying and eliminating inequities resulting from differences in health and in overall living conditions.1
PLANNING FOR HEALTH EQUITY AND TACKLING HEALTH INEQUALITIES
Lens One: Health inequity due to access inequity and national reimbursement
Ten root causes of delays to access and unavailability of innovative medicines, categorised into five key areas, have been identified by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA):2
I. The time prior to marketing authorisation;
II. The price and reimbursement process;
III. The value assessment process;
IV. Healthcare system constraints and resources;
V. The sub-national approval process.
Of the five categorised root causes of delays to access and unavailability of innovative medicines2, Accession has observed a significant opportunity for Access Leaders to develop solutions for:
IV) Healthcare system constraints and resources;
V) The sub-national approval process.
To ensure equity of access across populations, and between different groups within society, Accession believes the answer lies in healthcare system thinking and subnational access methodologies. Accession has learnt first-hand how to practically work towards reducing health inequalities and foster health equity in healthcare systems for over a decade.
Lens Two: Health inequity or health inequalities due to patient characteristics protected in equality rights, social or economic deprivation
Health equity: “The absence of unfair, avoidable or remediable differences among groups of people, whether those groups are defined socially, economically, demographically, or geographically or by other dimensions of inequality.”1
Health inequalities: “Unfair and avoidable differences in health across the population, and between different groups within society. These include how long people are likely to live, the health conditions they may experience and the care that is available to them.”3
By placing the patient at the centre of the careand being cognisant of the multidimensional aspects of populations and patient groups, we can understand and plan for how specific patients want to, or are able to, access services, and thus medicines. By taking this approach, the total population within healthcare systems will be accounted for.
HOW ACCESSION CAN HELP ACCESS LEADERS TO REDUCE HEALTH INEQUITY DUE TO ACCESS INEQUITY AND NATIONAL REIMBURSEMENT
Accession is flying the flag for Access Leaders and teams to reach into systems, regions and neighbourhoods with a health inequalities implementation plan, including a service and pathway that meets the needs of patients who are defined socially, economically, demographically, or geographically or by other dimensions of inequality.
ACCESSION DRIVES CERTAINTY INTO YOUR HEALTH EQUITY PROJECTS
Accession, alongside our world class client base, has developed an extensive body of work over the last decade utilising healthcare system thinking and subnational access methodologies. We have developed exemplar and optimised pathways for innovative new medicines, where service redesign and pathway transformation have been the key to unlocking patient access to medicines and the realisation of positive reimbursement .
1The World Health Organization
2European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). “The root cause of unavailability and delay to innovative medicines.” Report published April 2023.
3The UK National Health Service.
