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Organizational Profile of UNAPH




Organizational Profile
of 
 Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals
 (UNAPH)

Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals (UNAPH) is an industry association which represents the collective interests of independently-owned private hospitals and clinics in Uganda. The main aim of UNAPH is to represent, promote and protect the interests of private hospitals and private clinics, their owners and operators, and to interact with members, to ensure private hospital sector continues to be dynamic in meeting the changing needs of Ugandans and protect the interests and rights of Private health consumers.
Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals (UNAPH) was founded in 2006 with the prime objective of bringing together all independently owned private hospitals in Uganda under one umbrella with a view of coordinating and gain synergy from the relationship. We encourage commitment to quality services, ethical conduct and better healthcare standards in the Private Hospital Sector or rather the PFP private health sub-sector.  

                           Public Hospitals



Non-Profit Private             For-Profit Private
                                                     Health Sector (Independent Private Healthcare)

                 Public Health Sector
Mission
The Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals’ (UNAPH) mission is to Represent, Promote and Protect privatehospitals and private clinics in Uganda.
Vision
The Association’s vision is based on the following main objectives:
-          To provide a unified collective voice for private hospitals and private clinics. 
-          To represent, promote and protect the interests of private hospitals and clinics, their owners and operators, and to interact with members to ensure private hospital care continues to be dynamic in meeting the needs of the Ugandans.
-          To champion the cause of private hospitals in delivering the very best in private hospital care to patients. 
-          To foster and maintain a cooperative and communicative approach to dealing with Government , ministries, media , health organizations, community groups and the public. 
-          To protect the rights of private health consumers in Uganda. 
-          To provide a forum for discussion of issues and sharing best practices and ideas relevant to private hospitals and private clinics. 
-          To coordinate activities and promote, develop and maintain a uniformly high standard of patient care, skills, services and professionalism in private hospitals and private clinics. 
-          Encourage and facilitate united positions among hospitals and clinics, and allow other relevant bodies to achieve consensus in the policies and issues advanced. 
-          To exchange experiences and information with other hospitals in Uganda and Overseas on the professional and cost effective management of hospitals, training of hospital staff, medical matters, and to organize joint seminars, conferences and workshops, courses, activities, programs and services. 
-          To adopt all measures necessary to emphasize the rightful place of private hospitals and clinics in Uganda's health care system.
-          To provide education and training on issues relating to regulatory compliance, management, clinical improvement, and other matters that enable members to achieve their missions.
-          To take a leadership role in fostering a climate of collaboration, respect, and interdependency between the various providers of private health care.
-          To offer value added services that meet membership needs through the Association and its subsidiaries.
-          To participate in the global national initiatives to fight HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis, Child illnesses and other diseases.

Current Planned Programs
-          Design and formulate Management and Operation Guidelines for private hospitals and private clinics.
-          Carry out a National census of private hospitals and private clinics.
-          Develop a directory of private hospitals and clinics in Uganda.
-          Organize national consultation workshops with private hospital stakeholders.
-          Mobilize capacity building of the organization.
-          Develop and create a National ICT-Based Telemedicine /eHealth Network for private hospitals and private clinics.
-          Develop a Health Management Information System HMIS specifically for the PFP private health subsector.
-          Develop a ResourceCenter for private hospitals and clinics.
-          Innovate programs to fight and control HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis, Child illnesses and other diseases.
-          Establish a Centralized Medical Store (CMS) to serve private hospitals and private clinics.
-          Mobilize increased loanable resources and strategies for private hospitals and clinics.
-          Carry out orientation study visits to other countries’ hospital associations.
-          Increase the awareness and sensitization of UNAPH activities and services.
-          Establish a HealthcareManagementTrainingCenter.
-          Carry out a countrywide diagnostic survey of the private hospital sector in Uganda.
-          Establish a Joint Ambulatory Service (JAS) to serve all members of UNAPH by giving emergency medical services and specialized sophisticated treatments to their respective clients.
-          Develop a database for private hospital sector.
                                                                                          
Structural Set-up
·         Actively support initiatives that provide affordable opportunities for business and individuals to access health care coverage.
·         Maintain a balanced level of regulation that offers appropriate patient protection, community accountability and adequate flexibility for providers to deliver care in an efficient, ethical and cost-effective manner.
·         Support policies that further the commitment of UNAPH and its members to be accountable to the public for the cost, standards and quality of services provided.
·         Collaborate with the Ministry of Health, development partners, business community and others to develop solutions that stabilize private hospital care (PFP’s) while promoting a competitive marketplace.
·         Advocate for continued refinements in the private hospital care system that promote improved health service delivery.
·         Support government programs that fight HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Child illnesses, Tuberculosis and other diseases.
·         Develop Action Plans for each of the above key diseases i.e HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Child illnesses, Tuberculosis and policy programs.

                                       







Workforce Development
The current and future private health care environment provide significant challenges to the private health care system as it struggles to meet growing patient needs brought about by an increasing population, new technologies and a workforce that is likely to remain constant in the foreseeable future.
Quality and Patient Safety
Nothing is more important to patients we serve than a safe delivery environment that provides high quality care. The Association takes a leadership role in advancing quality and patient safety as a priority. This is accomplished by:
·         Using guidelines, recommendations and frameworks approved by the government.
·         Implementing UNAPH’s Quality Initiatives as the primary strategy for facilitating hospital reporting of quality and safety performance.
·         Taking a leadership role in promoting and guiding Patient Safety initiatives.
·         Working collaboratively with members, government and other organizations to advance a meaningful quality and safety agenda.
Complaints
The Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals (UNAPH) is dedicated to effective health consumer rights and redress as one of the driving forces in elements of change in private sector health services (Private-for-Profit PFP sub-sector). UNAPH strives to promote effective health human rights advocacy in private health services in the PFP private sector settings. This is an integral part of key policy and decision-making processes affecting many Ugandans.
The Importance of Strategic Relationships
Health care’s delivery evolution has featured a movement toward services being provided on a full continuum of care. To position UNAPH to represent this continuum effectively and through the most efficient use of resources, it is critical that strategic alliances be established with organizations that share common purposes and agendas.
Organizations with which UNAPH allies with include:
·         Uganda Government
·         Ministry of Health
·         World Health Organization
·         UNICEF
·         Uganda Aids Commission
·         UNAIDS
·         World Bank
·         Malaria Consortium
·         International and national diseases programs
·         Stoptb Partnership
·         Rollback Malaria
·         Pharmaceutical Society of Uganda.
·         National Drug Authority
·         Makerere University
·         Uganda Rural Health Association
·         InternationalHospital Federation
·         National Medical Councils
·         Public-Private Partnership in Health (PPPH) Desk
·         Uganda Allied Health Professional Association
·         Uganda Medical Association
·         UgandaMidwives & Nurses Association
·         Uganda Private Medical and Dental Practitioners Association
·         Association of Homes and Services for the Aged
·         Health Development Partners
·         Leadership organizations representing key members of the health care management system (e.g., Organizations of Nurse Executives, Health Care Financial Management Association, Health insurances, Health Public Relations and Marketing Groups, Healthcare Human Resources Administration, etc.);
·         Key elements of the Uganda Educational system, including the Ministry of Education, Health colleges & institutes, Makerere University Medical School, and other Universities, private colleges, Ministry of Health departments and Commissions.
UNAPH continues its commitment to develop strategic partnerships with organizations that advance program and policy priorities. These strategic partnerships occur around specific issues or legislative proposals and bring together organizations that otherwise have very different goals and agendas. Nevertheless, they are critical to UNAPH’s success as an advocacy organization and should be maximized to the extent possible.
Such organizations include:
·         Uganda National Chamber of Commerce
·         Private Sector Foundation, Uganda.
·         Uganda Investment Authority
·         Ministry of Trade
·         Etc
Programs Initiated by UNAPH
-          Private Hospitals Accreditation Manual and Survey Guide in 2011
-          National Public Health Week (NPHW) in 2010
-          Private Hospital Review for the PFP Health Subsector in Uganda
-          SRH & HIV/AIDS Action Plan for the PFP Health Subsector in Uganda
-          Central Medical Stores (CMS) for the PFP Health Subsector in Uganda
-          Centralized HMIS for the PFP Health Subsector in Uganda
-          Private Health Consumers Protection Program
UNAPH’s membership is diverse with the word of Hospitals Meaning private hospitals, private clinics and other private medical related centers.  Member hospitals include; for-Profit Private Hospitals & Clinics (PFP’s or independently-owned hospitals and clinics), Private Medical Centers, Private health Centers, dispensaries laboratories, Herbal Medicine Centers, complementary medicine centers, consultants, researchers, individuals and other Private health related service companies. These constituencies have before not been represented as institutions where sometimes had been represented through individual professionals associations.
Membership Benefits
-       Representation and Advocacy
-       Participation in a nationwide network dedicated to private hospital sector and private health issues.
-       Representation to the Government and other relevant authorities and agencies.
-       Opportunities to create inter-professional partnerships working to enhance the quality of private hospital care and seek solutions to private health issues.
-       Annual Conferences and periodical workshops.
-       Professional Education and training opportunities.
-       Periodical Newsletters
-       Input into national policies and dialogue framework which impact private hospital sector, private hospitals, private clinics and private health infrastructures.
-       Consultancy and legal Services.
-       Staff Resource Assistance.
-       Access to UNAPH’s programs and services e.g., the Central Medical Stores (CMS) and the Joint Ambulatory Services (JAS) / Joint Referral Systems.
Other Member Concerns
·         UNAPH maintains its leadership in implementing the National Health Programs.
·         UNAPH advocates for private hospitals and private clinics’ needs in the private health sector.
·         UNAPH provides dedicated training programs focusing on the needs of its members.
·         UNAPH recognizes that workforce shortage issues exist in some disciplines.
·         UNAPH provides community-based health leadership necessary to address the problems of Ugandans.
·         UNAPH provides specialized support to activities involving Private hospitals and private clinics and their unique approaches to meeting community health needs.
Annual Private Hospital Awards
UNAPH organizes Annual Hospital Awards in Uganda to recognize best private hospitals and private clinics and also recognize their specific area of performances as mentioned below;
-       BestPrivateHospital
-       Best Private Clinic
-       Best Private Hospital Administrator
-       Etc.
Specific Services Performances;
-       Community Health Services
-       Tuberculosis
-       Immunization
-       Reproductive Health Services
-       Maternity Services
-       Childhood Illnesses
-       Family Planning
-       HIV/AIDS care, Counseling
-       STD Treatment
-       Malaria Treatment
-       Etc.
Integrated Centralized Services 
·         UNAPH recognizes meaningful programming of the evolution of centralized health service delivery systems, including systems that have health business aspects. e.g Central Medical Stores (CMS), Joint Ambulatory Services (JAS), Joint Referral systems and others.
·         UNAPH acknowledges and invites the involvement of doctors and health leaders.
UNAPH Staff
Accomplishing these programs, we have a motivated and committed membership working closely with a motivated and committed staff. The Association attracts a staff of professionals having the range of expertise necessary to represent major interests in a broad array of areas and advance the strategic agenda.
UNAPH’s Distinction from other existing private health associations in Uganda
a)                  UNAPH specifically represents independently-owned private hospitals and clinics in the Private-for-Profit PFP Private health subsector in Uganda and does not interfere with faith-based medical bureaus and is not a coalition of other health associations in Uganda.
b)                  UNAPH cuts across the entire private health sector hence solving the problem of uncoordinated and fragmented PFP hospital regulation which needed a holistic approach to fully meet the needs of the community. 
c)                  UNAPH brings together independently-owned private hospitals and private clinics as ‘institutions’ representing them as complete single units unlike other health professional associations which brings together individual health professionals.  
Related Corporations and Organizations
UNAPH organizes shared services through our subsidiary companies and programs to provide responsive and innovative business products, services and solutions to health and private hospitals and private clinics in Uganda.
Central Medical Stores (CMS)
The Central Medical Stores (CMS) will specifically serve and sell human medical drugs to private hospitals and private clinics in Uganda. This Central Medical Store will be operated under Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals (UNAPH).
Joint Ambulatory Services (JAS)
The Joint Ambulatory Services (JAS) will serve as an integrated centralized health referral services dedicated to serve private hospitals and private clinics.
Uganda Health Management Institute (UHMI)
The Uganda Health Management Institute (UHMI) will be a private institution established to improve the management skills of Ugandan health professionals through improved management training, research, education and capacity in the health sector; creating and sharing new knowledge in health care management and public health; and networking and collaboration at national and international levels.
Uganda Rural Health Association (URHA)
UNAPH recognizes Uganda Rural Health Association (URHA) as its parent organization. URHA is the founding organization of UNAPH and works to improve rural health care in Uganda.
African Federation of Hospital Associations (AFHA).
UNAPH is the founding member of the African Federation of Hospital Associations (AFHA) which brings together private hospital associations, national hospital directorates, and regional hospital organizations in African countries.  AFHA has the mission of promoting improvements in health throughout African countries, foster high standards of hospital care, healthcare management, efficiency and networking of African hospital associations.


Contact Address:
Uganda National Association of Private Hospitals (UNAPH)
P.O.Box 29324 Kampala, Uganda
Tel: +256 772632211 / +256 704 762575
Email: unaph22@yahoo.com, unaph@doctor.com,  unaph@unaph.com
Website: www.unaph.com
Sir Apollo Kagwa Road, Opposite Gold Trust Bank

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