Public Sector Coordination

Because the goal of the franchise is to increase the number of people diagnosed and treated, particularly for TB and HIV/AIDS, it is important that the interaction with the public sector be positive, and that Healthspot franchisees not compete with the public sector for clients. The goal of establishing the franchise is to reach populations not served by the government clinics, through distance, or due to client choice, particularly in rural and urban slum areas. The franchise will reach these populations by working with existing providers in those communities to offer ease of access, short waiting times, quality diagnosis and treatment, quality highly affordable drugs and transparent prices.

Coordination with government regulatory agencies will happen at several levels. Clients will be given referrals at every level, both prior to and following diagnosis, to assure that patients are aware of the free alternatives for TB and AIDS care when offered by the government. Diagnosis, when possible, will be performed under contract by government lab facilities. The labs will receive $0.50 per diagnosis from the Healthspot franchiser. Healthspot clinics’ support of national TB and HIV goals will be assured through government agency supervision (by the national TB and AIDS programs), strict program compliance with national guidelines, and integration of all records with appropriate government agencies.

In order to assure that treatment provided by Healthspot franchisees complies with national standards, the National TB and HIV/AIDS programs will be engaged to provide medical training during the initiation and annual re-training periods.

Selection criteria, such as the number of years in private practice and a requirement of full time private operation, will be set so as to minimize the potential for the franchise to cannibalize limited public sector human resources – a particular concern for the future addition of ARV services. These criteria will be established independently for each country by the NFO, in coordination with the MOH.

74 New Montgomery, Suite 508, San Francisco, California 94105-3411, USA