Evaluation of the organization and provision of primary care in Serbia

In many countries in transition, health reforms are part of profound and comprehensive changes in essential societal functions and values. Reforms of (primary) care are not always based on evidence,
and progress may be driven by political arguments or the interests of specific professional groups, rather than by the results of sound evaluations. However, policy-makers and managers nowadays increasingly demand evidence of the progress of reforms and the responsiveness of services. The implementation of the WHO Primary Care Evaluation Tool (PCET) aims to provide a
structured approach to this by drawing on health system functions such as governance, financing and resource generation, as well as the characteristics of a good PC service delivery system:
accessibility, comprehensiveness, coordination and continuity. This report gives an overview on the findings for Serbia.

The project was implemented in Serbia in 2009 in the framework of the 2008–2009 Biennial Collaborative Agreement between the WHO Regional Office for Europe and the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Serbia, which lays out the main areas of work for collaboration between the parties. Other partners were the Netherland Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL) – a WHO Collaborating Centre for Primary Care – and other stakeholders in the health system of Serbia, such as national policy experts, managers, medical educators, PC physicians and their patients.