Zewditu Memorial, Yekatit 12, Menelik II, Ras Desta Damtew Memorial and Tirunesh Beijing hospitals under the Addis Abeba Health Bureau are getting ready to outsource a host of their clinical and non-clinical services to the private sector.

Officials disclosed outsourcing the services will begin after preliminary arrangements are complete indicating that it falls in line with the city-wide initiative to incorporate Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) and improve the quality and consistency of health care.

Yohannes Chala (MD), head of the Bureau, says the scheme under the purview of the city administration will call for bids from eligible applicants for rendering of specific clinical and diagnostic services with pricing details determined after financial studies are done.

"This is what PPPs would look like in the health sector," Yohannes told Fortune.

He stated that allowing the private sector to participate in the provision of medical care would seal gaps observed in service and medicine accessibility to patients.

Yohannes insinuated that while complete privatisation is not part of the plan, it has not been ruled out as part of a long-term strategy.

A study by Colombia University's Mailman School of Public Health indicates that while Ethiopia had its first hospital built by the Russian Red Cross in 1909, the country has failed to achieve universal primary health care. Attempts like the Ala-Mata declaration, which sought to provide universal primary care by the millennium, failed due to a lack of clear policies and strategies at the national level.

The City Health Bureau's 6.12 billion Br budget for the ended year does not seem to alleviate the costs of health facilities under its management strained by a lack of chemical reagents and maintenance of diagnostic equipment over the years.

Nearly 50-year-old Zewditu Memorial Hospital, located between Taitu and Yohanis Streets is one of the public hospitals targeted for the PPP scheme. It was built and operated by the Seventh Day Church until it was nationalised by the Derg military regime in the mid-70s.

Medical Director at Zewditu, Dechassa Bulti (MD), says the benefits of the PPP scheme will be strongly felt across three dimensions; easing of managerial burden (which has already been glimpsed as the hospital outsourced its cafeteria and laundry services), improved quality of service and consistency of supply.

He expressed specific eagerness for the inclusion of the private sector in the provision of laboratory reagents as the shortage of chemicals has forced the hospital to venture into the market on several occasions.

"It is frustrating for patients to learn they have to look for some service outside the hospital," he told Fortune. "Reagents are rarely found in the market and expensive when they are."

Dechassa observed that public procurement procedures, while they are stringent to prevent misallocation, impede flexibility, unlike the private sector. He expects a slight increment in costs will be worth the improvement in quality.

Clinical and diagnostic services such as Magnetic Resonance (MRI) and Computed Tomography Scan (CT) and non-clinical services such as security and cafeteria services will be incorporated under the new scheme, according to the Medical Director.