Performance-based financing as a health system reform : mapping the key dimensions for monitoring and evaluation

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Supersymmetric N=2 Einstein-Yang-Mills monopoles and covariant attractors

We present two generic classes of supersymmetric solutions of N=2, d=4 supergravity coupled to non-Abelian vector supermultiplets with a gauge group that includes an SU(2) factor. The first class consists of embeddings of the 't Hooft-Polyakov monopole and in the examples considered it has a fully regular, asymptotically flat space-time metric without event horizons. The other class of solutions consists of regular non-Abelian extreme black holes. There is a covariant attractor at the horizon of these non-Abelian black holes.Comment: 14 pages, Late

The FGK formalism for black p-branes in d dimensions

We present a generalization to an arbitrary number of spacetime (d) and worldvolume (p+1) dimensions of the formalism proposed by Ferrara, Gibbons and Kallosh to study black holes (p=0) in d=4 dimensions. We include the special cases in which there can be dyonic and self- or anti-self-dual black branes. Most of the results valid for 4-dimensional black holes (relations between temperature, entropy and non-extremality parameter, and between entropy and black-hole potential on the horizon) are straightforwardly generalized. We apply the formalism to the case of black strings in N=2,d=5 supergravity coupled to vector multiplets, in which the black-string potential can be expressed in terms of the dual central charge and work out an explicit example with one vector multiplet, determining supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric attractors and constructing the non-extremal black-string solutions that interpolate between them.Comment: 28 pages no figures; v2: some references adde

Type 0 T-Duality and the Tachyon Coupling

We consider the T-duality relations between Type 0A and 0B theories, and show that this constraints the possible couplings of the tachyon to the RR-fields. Due to the `doubling' of the RR sector in Type 0 theories, we are able to introduce a democratic formulation for the Type 0 effective actions, in which there is no Chern-Simons term in the effective action. Finally we discuss how to embed Type II solutions into Type 0 theories.Comment: some misprints corrected and a reference adde

Contrat de performance avec une administration sanitaire provinciale : cas du Nord Kivu en République Démocratique du Congo.

Introduction : De nombreuses expériences de financement basé sur les performances sont documentées au niveau des hôpitaux et centres de santé, mais pas sur les administrations sanitaires. La présente étude décrit une expérience de contrat de performance au niveau de l’administration sanitaire provinciale du Nord Kivu, en RD Congo. Méthodes : Cette étude a recouru à la triangulation de trois méthodes : (i) une analyse documentaire, (ii) l’analyse des données d’interviews d’acteurs clés sur leur perception de la stratégie, (iii) l’analyse des données d’utilisation des services curatifs et préventifs dans la province. Résultats : Le contrat de performance a été négocié entre les cadres de l’administration sanitaire provinciale, l’administration centrale et les partenaires. Les trois parties prenantes se sont référées à huit fonctions jugées pertinentes pour l’administration sanitaire provinciale. Ces fonctions sont liées à la gouvernance provinciale du système sanitaire et à l’appui sociotechnique et logistique aux districts sanitaires (zones de santé). Les engagements négociés tous les trois mois ont varié en fonction du contexte et des besoins de soutien des zones de santé. Le niveau de réalisation des engagements et le score de fonctionnalité de l’administration sanitaire provinciale ont évolué respectivement de 75,3% à 87,3% et de 67% à 82%, entre 2007 et 2009. L’utilisation des services curatifs et préventifs au niveau de la province s’est également améliorée : l’utilisation des services curatifs est passée de 0,40 NC/habitant à 0,65 NC/habitant entre 2007 et 2009. En revanche peu d’améliorations de la qualité des soins ont été observées. Cette stratégie a été perçue par les acteurs impliqués comme s’étant bien intégrée à d’autres stratégies au niveau provincial et ayant renforcé leur mise en oeuvre, notamment le financement basé sur les performances au niveau des centres de santé et hôpitaux. Conclusion : Le contrat de performance peut s’avérer utile au niveau d’une administration sanitaire provinciale d’un pays à faible revenu pourvu qu’il soit mis en oeuvre dans une perspective globale. Cette perspective impose de prendre en compte certains défis notamment une articulation avec les fonctions pertinentes de l’administration sanitaire provinciale et une flexibilité

“I Wish I Had AIDS”: A qualitative study on access to health care services for HIV/AIDS and diabetic patients in Cambodia

Financially stricken Cambodian patients with diabetes and HIV/AIDS typically encounter multiple, serious barriers to effective care. This process may extend over many years and involve numerous rounds of diagnosis and treatment as the disease progresses from initial symptoms to longer term complications. Living with both the impact of the disease and this ongoing struggle for care can severely disrupt the everyday life of both sufferers and their families. Our retrospective study adopted qualitative research methods to collect data from HIV/AIDS and diabetic patients enrolled and not enrolled in treatment programs at varying institutions in urban and rural settings. Using purposive sampling techniques, a total of 25 HIV/AIDS and 45 diabetic patients were recruited. Semi-structured and open-ended interviews were used to collect information on patient experiences of different phases in the on-going process of seeking care and treatment. The findings indicate that both HIV/AIDS and diabetic patients encounter multiple supply- and demand-side barriers to care at different stages of their illness. More strikingly, our research findings suggest that supply-side barriers, for example rationing systems or targeting strategies that limit access to free treatment or social assistance, are substantially higher for diabetic patients. This perceived inequity had a profound impact on diabetic patients to the extent that some “wished they had HIV/AIDS”. These findings suggest that there is an urgent need to widen the focus of health care to address the substantial and increasing burden of disease resulting from diabetes and other serious chronic disorders in Cambodia and many other low/middle income countries.

Black holes and black strings of N=2, d=5 supergravity in the H-FGK formalism

We study general classes and properties of extremal and non-extremal static black-hole solutions of N=2, d=5 supergravity coupled to vector multiplets using the recently proposed H-FGK formalism, which we also extend to static black strings. We explain how to determine the integration constants and physical parameters of the black-hole and black-string solutions. We derive some model-independent statements, including the transformation of non-extremal flow equations to the form of those for the extremal flow. We apply our methods to the construction of example solutions (among others a new extremal string solution of heterotic string theory on K_3 \times S^1). In the cases where we have calculated it explicitly, the product of areas of the inner and outer horizon of a non-extremal solution coincides with the square of the moduli-independent area of the horizon of the extremal solution with the same charges.Comment: 33 pages. Revised version: references added. No other change

On Seven-Brane and Instanton Solutions of Type IIB

It is shown that magnetic seven-branes previously considered as different objects are members of a one-parametric family of supersymmetric seven branes. We enlarge the class of seven-branes by constructing new magnetically and also electrically charged seven branes. The solutions display a kink-like behavior. We also construct a solution that naturally generalizes the D-instanton.Comment: 19 pages, no figures. v2: references added. v3: changes in text in section 2.3; minor typos elsewher

Assessing Communities of Practice in health policy : A conceptual framework as a first step towards empirical research

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