Support To Evidence Informed Priority Setting in Ghana Project (STEPS-Ghana project)

About the project

Priority setting in the context of NCD benefit packages refers to the process of determining which health services, interventions, and medications should be included in the benefit package for individuals with NCDs. This has become relevant because healthcare resources are often limited, and decision need to be made on how best to allocate resources to improve health outcomes for the population. In view of this, the Ministry of Health (MOH) in Ghana as a leading policy partner with technical support from the Bergen Centre for Ethics and Priority Setting (BCEPS) are collaborating in providing evidence informed processes to priority setting for designing and reviewing NCDs health benefit package for Ghana.

Expected outcomes

The key objectives of this project are in threefold:

1. To review an essential NCD UHC package in Ghana
2. To develop capacity in health economics and priority setting related to NCDs in Ghana
3. To make recommendations for integrated delivery of priority NCD interventions in Ghana’s health systems

Where we are at the moment?

The Ghana team has advanced in relation to the project governance and undertaken the following strides:

1. Together with the MOH, we have in place the Steering Committee, Technical Working Group (TWG) and established a BCEPs secretariat (stationed at the Ministry of Health)
2. Our main maiden TWG meeting was held in Ghana (7^th-9^th August 2023) with FairChoices training for the group.
3. Terms of reference (TOR) for the TWG and the BCEPS Secretariat have been developed.  The Secretariat will receive technical assistance from the Department of Health Policy, Planning and Management, School of Public Health, University of Ghana.
4. We have developed a project work plan to guide execution and implementation.