The eQuality Health Bwindi scheme is an innovative partnership between Bwindi Community Hospital and International Medical Group to help the people of the Bwindi area access quality and affordable health services. All members of the Bwindi community have the chance to ‘subscribe’ to this scheme by making a single annual payment of UGX 6000 ($3) per person which entitles them to use Hospital Outpatient and Inpatient services including investigations, drugs and even operations at a cost of only UGX 1000 (50c) per visit. This scheme enables people to pay for health care collectively and in advance, instead of waiting until they become sick and fearing the cost of care. It protects the poor, and enables them to have some control over their health care. It also maintains high quality services for the people of the Bwindi area for the future.

To find out much more about the eQuality Health Bwindi scheme please download this leaflet eQuality case for support.

The first year of the scheme (2010) is costing about $270,000 – half of which we will raise from the community through 45,000 people paying subscriptions, collected through Bataka groups (also known as burial societies). More than 95% of people in the Bwindi area are members of these Bataka groups, which are used to collecting money for burials and other community events and have good internal systems of accountability. All members of a group will have to join to avoid ‘adverse selection’, and the premium has been set at a level that everyone can afford if they choose.

We intend to raise the other $135,000 from supporters who want to help a programme that helps people to help themselves. The slogan for the scheme is ‘Bataka Twetambire’ which means ‘Let’s Heal Ourselves’. If you can help or know someone who can help, please contact us.

We have already registered almost 30,000 people onto a database designed by our IT team (click here to see sample Screenshots from the database system) which we will use to monitor who joins the scheme and follow the pattern of diseases in the Hospital and the community. This database includes GPS information to enable us to map diseases, and poverty information which helps us to target the very poorest.

The scheme is being managed by eQuality Health Bwindi under a part of International Medical Group called International Medical Foundation. They collect the money from the Bataka groups, and then pay the Hospital as long as the Hospital continues to provide quality services for the community. The quality framework that eQuality use to monitor the performance of the Hospital can be viewed here

eQuality Framework