Page 138 - HA Convention 2015

Symposiums

S5.1 Public Healthcare Funding: Objectives and Constraints 09:00 Convention Hall B

Health Reform and Population-based Resource Allocation
Nicholson D
David Nicholson Healthcare Solutions, UK

A review of the National Health Service’s experience of population based allocations. The speaker will consider the strengths
and weaknesses of the different approaches taken over the last eight years, and their impact on health inequalities. The role
that the age of the population plays in allocations will be addressed, and the tension between population allocations and
payment systems for hospitals, and their impact on health reform will be reviewed.

Tuesday, 19 May

S5.2 Public Healthcare Funding: Objectives and Constraints 09:00 Convention Hall B

HOSPITAL AUTHORITY CONVENTION 2015 Internal Resource Allocation — the What, Why and How
Liu HW
Finance Division, Hospital Authority, Hong Kong

Nothing is more misleading than asking the wrong question, and nothing could be further from the truth than the belief of
having it in one’s own hand. Internal resource allocation (IRA) does not exist in a vacuum. In a way we are blind persons trying
to figure out the elephant, each from its own perspective and personal experience.

We are all at the mercy of our cognitive process and biases. It is not uncommon for people to believe that they are the source
of their problems, and end up blaming themselves. But it is far more common, and convenient, to believe that problems are
caused by others and demand them to be fixed. Either way, problem seldom goes away. Indeed, such a one-sided mindset
could be part of the reason for the problem to persist.

Life is about learning from the past, living in the present, and building for the future. If we really want to understand the fuss,
we would need to distance ourselves from the debate and re-examine our mindset before making any endeavours to put all
the pieces of the jigsaw together.

There are many facets to the “what”, the “why” and the “how” of our subject matter – IRA, which, like many other things,
is subject to a whole host of factors, not just the present ones but also things in the past that left their legacy and placed
constraint on the present state of affairs. The speaker will discuss the subject from multiple angles and highlight some of
the myths that complicate the understanding, and thereby possible resolution, of the subject. Many a times, it is through
awareness of our limitations – how much we do not know, or had misunderstood – that propels us in the right direction.

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