Government has paid tribute to the Association of Healthcare Funders of Zimbabwe (AFHoZ) after the latter trained staff members in public health institutions.
Staff members were trained on Billing through the ICD10 coding, a system used by physicians and other healthcare providers to classify and code all diagnoses, symptoms and procedures recorded in conjunction with hospital care.
In a speech read on his behalf by his deputy Dr John Mangwiro at the recently held AFHoZ annual conference in Victoria Falls, Health and Child Care Minister Constantine Chiwenga said there is need for continuous improvement in the healthcare ecosystem to meet population demand.
“The Ministry applauds AHFoZ’s role in training public institutions staff members on Billing. I challenge you to continue training to cover gaps created by staff turnover. This will empower our hospitals to bill efficiently for services rendered to medical aid patients. The introduction of ICD10 coding which was championed by AHFoZ for use by medical aid societies and providers is a welcome development as its use has advantages for government, service providers and medical aid societies.
“We are aware that in other countries projects such as introduction of the ICD10 coding falls directly under the government as it is of National importance. We therefore appreciate your complementary role in running with it. As government the use of ICD10 will enable us to collect statistics on epidemiology among others.
“The health consciousness of the people of Zimbabwe, means the demand for healthcare services is bound to rise. There is need, therefore, for continuous improvement in the healthcare ecosystem to be able to meet the demands of the population. We need a robust healthcare system that enables our people to live long and productive lives and prevent premature deaths,” said Chiwenga.
He added “Whilst there has been an improvement of indicators such as the maternal mortality ratio, live births, tuberculosis and malaria incidence and immunisation coverage, we still need to do more to improve the ratios. There should be zero maternal deaths and 100% live births. No woman should die carrying out the National duty of giving birth.”
