NHIA CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM TRAINED ON VALUE-BASED CARE

The training, held at the NHIA’s Old Boardroom, focused on equipping the team with comprehensive knowledge on Value-Based Care (VBC), telephone etiquette, patient-related outcomes, and patient-related experience measures. The session, was part of NHIA’s ongoing efforts to enhance healthcare delivery across Ghana.

The training was facilitated by Ruth Kukua Ntumy Coleman, Client Services Manager at the Corporate Affairs Directorate, and Emmanuel Opoku-Asante, a Senior Officer in the Data Analytics unit. The session also saw participation from Madam Doreen Efua Amoatin, a representative from PharmAccess, who convened the training.

During the training, the team engaged in a practicum on capturing patient responses via Google Forms, providing hands-on experience to ensure that they are well-prepared for real-world applications. Ruth Kuukua Ntumy Coleman emphasized the importance of empathy in customer service and guided the participants through practical exercises involving Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) and Patient-Reported Experience Measures (PREMs).

Acting Director of Corporate Affairs, Oswald Essuah-Mensah, and Director of Actuarial, Magnus Owusu-Agyemang, both addressed the team, encouraging them to engage patients professionally and to embrace the VBC model. Mr. Essuah-Mensah highlighted that the shift from a volume-based to a value-based reimbursement model is key to improving patient outcomes and optimizing healthcare resource utilization in Ghana.

The Value-Based Care program, a collaborative effort between NHIA, the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), and PharmAccess International (PAI), is currently being piloted in 22 healthcare facilities across six regions: Ahafo, Bono, Bono East, Eastern, Central, and Greater Accra. The focus of the pilot program is on hypertension, a critical public health issue in Ghana, with the aim of improving the management and treatment of the condition.

Emmanuel Opoku-Asante provided an overview of Ghana’s healthcare journey, from the inception of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in 2003 to the current implementation of the VBC program. He underscored the benefits of VBC, which ties provider reimbursement to the quality, equity, and cost of care, thereby ensuring that healthcare services are both efficient and patient-centered.

The training concluded with a call to action from Doreen Efua Amoatin of PharmAccess, who urged the Customer Service team to make Value-Based Care their core focus to ensure that patients receive the highest quality of care.