Disease Prevention is Priority

The government is to prioritize health promotion and disease prevention as future intervention measures for the nation’s health services, with a view to reducing the public health burden.

Kompas/Heru Sri Kumoro

Kompas Gramedia CEO Lilik Oetama delivers a report to President Joko Widodo at the 2021 Kompas100 CEO Forum event at the State Palace, Jakarta, Thursday (18/11/2021). The event was attended by a number of ministers, ambassadors, CEOs, at the State Palace, Jakarta Convention Center, or virtually.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The Covid-19 pandemic has showed that promoting a healthy lifestyle as part of preventive measures has an integral role in the healthcare system.

The government is committed to focusing on upstream intervention in Indonesia’s health service transformation. All parties, including the health industry, are expected to participate in the campaign.

At the 12th Kompas100 CEO Forum Powered by East Ventures, held on Thursday (18/11/2021) in Jakarta, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin acknowledged that the health industry was still low in terms of both effectiveness and efficiency.

“This can be seen from the health costs compared to average life expectancy. In some countries, high healthcare costs does not necessarily result in higher life expectancy,” he said.

Budi referred to this phenomenon as an anomaly. For example, Cuba had a per capita health cost that was 10 percent lower than the United States, but life expectancy in the two countries was the same. He attributed this to the Cuban health system’s promotion and prevention measures.

“So, the health approach and strategy is not treating sick people, but creating healthy people. So far, almost 90 percent of Indonesia’s health budget has been spent on curative care,” he said.

Also read:

> Spur New Economic Transformation

> Sharp Curves Ahead in-2022

“Therefore, in the future, we will adjust the budget (allocation) to focus more on promoting prevention," Budi added.

The government has allocated Rp 255.4 trillion to the 2022 health budget. The budget covers Covid-19 handling, such as vaccination and patient treatment, increasing the effectiveness of childbirth insurance and its integration with the National Health Insurance (BPJS Kesehatan), an accelerated stunting reduction program and healthcare reform.

Budi said that the optimized budget for health promotion would also expand public vaccination coverage to include the human papillomavirus (HPV), pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), and rotaviruses.

In addition, coverage for antenatal care (ANC) services would be increased from four to six sessions. Routine medical checkups would be covered under the National Health Insurance-Indonesia Health Card (JKN-KIS) program, while health screening for newborns would be improved.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin and East Ventures Operating Partner David Fernando Audy and guided by moderator Chatib Basri (left) during a discussion session at the Kompas 100 CEO Forum with the theme "Healthy Economy 2022" which was held annually. hybrid at the State Palace and the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), Jakarta, Thursday (18/11/2021).

Healthcare transformation

As for health service transformation, Budi said the ministry had compiled six key programs for the 2021-2024 period: primary services, referral services, health system resilience, health financing, health human resources and digital health transformation.

Among these six programs, the health industry is expected to step up its role in supporting health system resilience and digital health transformation. The government is aiming to increase the share of domestic components in pharmaceutical products and medical equipment to a maximum 50 percent.

"If there is a lockdown [localized quarantine] in critical situations like this pandemic, our production will be greatly impacted. So it's not just about nationalism, but more about the resilience of our healthcare system in relation to the distribution of health services to 270 million Indonesians," Budi said.

As part of its health service transformation, the government plans to provide corporate incentives for production and distribution businesses from the upstream to the downstream especially those involved in developing active pharmaceutical ingredients and essential medicines.

Also read:

> Standardization of-Sustainable Business Urged

> Resurgence of Covid-19 Pandemic

The government is also encouraging the procurement of domestically made products and boosting support for product licenses.

Budi said the health industry’s participation in digital health transformation was imperative given the future prospects in the wider use of biotechnology in therapeutic treatments.

Therapy, he said, would be more specific and individuated to patients.

PT Kalbe Farma president director Vidjongtius said that given the diverse needs of the health sector, the industry would look to the government for direction on product innovation priorities.

“The need for innovation is quite large. To be effective, there must be a focus. With focus and priority, it will be easier for the industry to align innovation with the government's plans," he said.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

CEO of Kalbe Farma Vidjongtius at the Kompas100 CEO Forum "Healthy Economy 2022" which was held in a hybrid manner at the State Palace and the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), Jakarta, Thursday (18/11/2021).

According to Vidjongtius, prioritization would make the research and innovation ecosystem more effective at strengthening cooperation between academia, industry, government and the public. Downstream research was expected to go beyond discourse and publication towards realization as action.

Information Technology

Budi said that the use of information technology in the health sector would be directed towards promoting preventive measures. Online healthcare services (telemedicine) would be encouraged to not only provide health consultations, but also promote healthy lifestyle for all people across the country.

Big data and artificial intelligence were projected to have a significant impact on the health industry in the next 5-10 years. The use of telemedicine, which stored patient data containing medical diagnoses, X-rays, drug purchases and lab results, could be used to evaluate and generate projections on public health.

"Health risks can be prevented early," Budi added.

Also read:

> Competence and Commitment Key in Business Transformation

SehatQ chief commercial officer Andrew Sulistya said the digital healthcare sector developed rapidly amid the Covid-19 pandemic. However, digital health services were not being used optimally, so the sector needed to increase its involvement in national health programs.

“When we talk about digital healthcare, it is much more than just telemedicine. Digital healthcare services can be used to contribute to cost efficiency, time efficiency, or to promotional, educational and preventive activities," he said.

This article was translated by Musthofid.