The People’s Voice Report is a companion piece to the report of the Lancet Global Health Commission on High Quality Health Systems in the Sustainable Development Goals Era, entitled, “Time for a Quality Revolution.” The Commission is composed of academic and policy leaders from eighteen countries who study, plan and implement healthcare in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The People’s Voice Advisory Board to this Commission includes nine civil society experts in healthcare advocacy, citizen-led accountability for quality, and participatory methods in healthcare design and delivery. This report is the advisory board’s response to “Time for a Quality Revolution,” a report that asks academics and policy makers alike to remember that quality of care is not only a technical issue, but also a political one. The contributors to this report are advocates who understand this acutely. They are masters of making sure that decision-makers understand the experiences and concerns of people as they weigh the value of high quality care against a menu of other socioeconomic and political priorities.
The People’s Voice Report aims to 1) contribute to a fuller understanding of health system quality in low- and middle-income countries by giving voice to people including patients, families, communities, providers, managers; 2) in conjunction with “Time for a Quality Revolution”, to serve as a tool for health system quality advocates, 3) to make people-centric recommendations for future action to better understand and deliver high quality care. This is not meant to be a formal piece of research, nor to be representative of civil society or all people who use and depend on health systems in LMICs.