A model for social health organizations that needs to reinvent itself – 05/07/2022 – Opinion

Social health organizations (OSSs) were pioneered by the São Paulo government in the late 1990s and are now recognized across the country as an alternative to effective, lower-cost care for the government.

In the first phase, a partnership model between municipal and state health departments and charities allowed incomplete hospitals to be quickly completed, equipped and commissioned to ensure help for SUS patients. The idea was to print private management concepts into hospitals and other public health units. It worked.

But, at another time, the open source software paradigm was unfortunately detached from its true goals, which led to deviations and also failed in the search for new challenges.

After 24 years, it is time to re-discuss, and why not say, reinvent the partnership between OSSs and public administration, given the current health and state scenario.

And what do we expect from the future? The answer is not simple, nor is it intended to be definitive. However, it is the assumption that seems appropriate to us that considers what is expected of any public-private partnership, particularly when it comes to public health care: continuous innovation and evolution as a means to improve public health. .

This means increasing humane care for the population, searching for complementary financial resources, designing and introducing the latest technological and scientific innovations; All in the sense of providing the population with maximum efficiency in providing the most sensitive public service to them.

In a difficult and painful way, the Covid-19 pandemic has forced general managers and private partners to think “outside the box” to avoid a health crash. Work relationships are becoming more flexible, including home office and virtual training. Teleservice for patients unable to leave home and isolated by Covid-19 has been implemented quickly.

Now, although the atmosphere has calmed down, the pandemic is signaling the fact that there is no turning back.
Even the relations between the public and private partners themselves were resized, allowing discussion of public policies which, until then, had belonged exclusively to the state, in view of the need for an immediate solution, and open to common public and private opinions and decisions.

The use of telemedicine has paved the way for bringing the virtual world and even the metaverse into the realm of public health – and should serve as a way to break models, break down barriers, and provide tools to integrate and extend care to the population at lower cost and greater effectiveness.

It is also important to reconsider the first two stages of the partnership between third sector organizations and public administration, recognizing their successes and mistakes – noting trends and developments in management. This is necessary, including for the organizational and legislative reconfiguration and “beautification” of the same model that follows and meets the current needs of the SUS.

It is time to act, to reject ideologies and extremisms and strive to modernize the model, in order to add modern management concepts, following the development of global health and equating SUS care with the best private centers in the state and the world.

_{Directions/Discussions
Articles published jointly do not reflect the opinion of the newspaper. His publication serves the purpose of stimulating debate on Brazilian and global problems and reflects the different directions of contemporary thought.}