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Health system strengthening refers to initiatives that improve one or more functions of health systems, leading to better health. There is a large body of evidence on what works to strengthen health systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), much of which is aligned to the World Health Organization (WHO) health system building blocks (service delivery; health workforce; information; medical products, vaccines and technologies; financing; and leadership/governance). Despite the fact that some people with disabilities have additional health needs, and many face additional barriers to accessing healthcare, inclusion of people with disabilities is largely missing from this evidence base. Separately, a smaller evidence base exists on increasing the effectiveness of specific health-related services targeting people with disabilities, such as health-related Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR), rehabilitation services more broadly, and mental health services. This second evidence base is less closely aligned to the building blocks. Reviewing these outputs in parallel goes some way towards identifying effective strategies for strengthening health systems for disability inclusive development.

Purpose: This article explores the complexities of leprosy-related stigma and the potential effectiveness of a socio-economic intervention in Cirebon District, Indonesia.

Methods: A qualitative approach was adopted. 53 people affected by leprosy were interviewed, and 17 focus group discussions were conducted among people affected by leprosy, community and religious leaders, and health providers and other key persons who were all purposively selected.

Results:  People affected by leprosy face major socio-economic consequences. This was confirmed by key persons. Several opportunities for a possible socio-economic intervention were perceived, as also the barriers. People affected by leprosy are constrained by certain aspects of the health system (e.g., the health providers’ negative attitudes), views in society (e.g., misunderstandings about the condition, stigma), and the physical and social consequences of the disease (impairments, feelings of shame). Study participants identified strategies to deal with these barriers, as well as specific activities for a socio-economic intervention; in particular, the training of staff responsible for implementation.

Conclusion and Implications: Socio-economic interventions in the field of leprosy need to anticipate the barriers and develop strategies to deal with them. Cooperation between people working in the health system and those in the welfare / financial system is needed, to improve the quality of life of people affected by leprosy

This advocacy briefing paper presents key information about including people with disabilities in health systems. It highlights key health facts, related legal frameworks and explores issues such as lack of access to equitable healthcare and the benefits of equitable healthcare. It provides recommendations for stakeholders and suggests ways to measure progress

Advocacy briefing paper

This report provides an overview "for why and how disability can and should be included in the planning, monitoring and evaluation of MDG related programmes and policies." This report is useful to people working in disability advocacy, programming and outreach efforts, as well as people those working on MDG-related efforts

This article presents research which assessed the contributions of rising mortality, falling HIV incidence and sexual behaviour change to the decline in HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe. It comprised of a comprehensive review and secondary analysis of national and local sources on trends in HIV prevalence, HIV incidence, mortality and sexual behaviour in the period 1985 - 2007. The findings provide the first convincing evidence of an HIV decline accelerated by changes in sexual behaviour in a southern African country, nevertheless, in 2007 one in seven adults in Zimbabwe was still infected by a life-threatening virus and mortality rates remained at crisis point

This is a report on the meeting of the executive board about the 2008 Bamako call to action on health research - strengthening health, equity and research

This is a report on a technical consultation on treatment education held in Paris November 22-23, 2005, which aimed to assess the current state of HIV treatment literacy and community preparedness, identify needs and recommend strategies for the future. The effectiveness of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and medical care relies on timely HIV testing and treatment adherence. Treatment education interventions addressing issues of stigma and complacency, have been shown to contribute to a wider uptake of testing services and to improve adherence to ART. The report calls for an integrated and synergetic collaboration between all stakeholders, including people with HIV, and for the adoption of a participatory, person-centred approach. It also acknowledges that while there is a wealth of initiatives aimed at improving community preparedness, there is also a need to scale up programmes that have shown to work. The report concludes with a number of key recommendations for future activities. Those include: providing support to partnership and inter-sectoral collaborations; integrating treatment education across HIV education programmes and health systems; differentiating and customising approaches according to settings and audiences; involving affected communities and individuals; monitoring and evaluating treatment education initiatives