Health Publications

Sep 30, 2020

Artificial Intelligence and Healthcare in Emerging Markets

Significant investments in health technology, including those using digital health and artificial intelligence, are expected to contribute to bridging the health service gap in emerging markets, given the potential of these new innovations to reach underserved patients. Many health-tech innovators are integrating AI into their product solutions, with early examples showing promise in improving diagnoses, reducing costs, and enabling access to remote health services.

English | 8 pages — September — Note 91 | IFC 2020

Jan 8, 2020

Briefing Paper: Enabling Health Technology in Emerging Markets

A briefing paper from the IFC Health Technology Think Tank discussion at the 2019 Global Private Healthcare Conference

Dec 9, 2019

Briefing Paper: Improving Access and Affordability for Biopharmaceuticals in Emerging Markets

A briefing paper from the Biopharmaceutical Think Tank discussion at the 2019 IFC Global Private Health Care Conference

English | 10 pages | Dec 2019

Nov 25, 2019

Briefing Paper: Public-Private Partnerships for Emerging Market Health

A briefing paper from the IFC Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Think Tank discussion at the 2019 Global Private Health Care Conference

Jun 27, 2019

Case Study: A Retail Approach to Diabetes Care

Clinicas del Azucar is disrupting existing models for treating diabetes through its one-stop-shop, convenient approach. Patients pay an affordable membership subscription that covers lab tests, screenings, lifestyle education and coaching. By integrating how it provides care, Clinicas is able to reduce the number of appointments patients need to manage their diabetes. More than 63 percent of patients have met their goals for maintaining blood sugar levels and have their diabetes under control, preventing often life-threatening complications. Clinicas’ model offers an approach that could revolutionize the way diabetes is treated in low- and middle-income countries. Learn more in our latest case study.

English | 26 pages | 2019 IFC

May 28, 2019

Insights from Miami Series

This series of four briefs summarize the discussions from a think-tank session held on the margins of IFC’s Global Private Healthcare Conference 2019 on the topics of Senior Care, Biopharma, Public-Private Partnerships, and Insurance.

Mar 18, 2019

Women's Leadership in Health

Despite women’s employment as doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care personnel, available data consistently shows a lack of gender parity in leadership.

English | 40 pages | March 2019 | IFC

Mar 18, 2019

Create a Culture, not a Checklist

This study provides insights into how hospitals and clinics in emerging markets can improve patient safety and embed quality in the culture of the organization. It also shares experience of three IFC clients who have achieved remarkable results in “living quality every day.”

English | 24 pages | March 2019 | IFC

Mar 15, 2019

CASE STUDY: BioE

Giving Millions of Children a Healthy Start in Life

English | 19 pages | March 2019 | IFC

Feb 15, 2019

CASE STUDY: PROCAPS

Encapsulating High Quality, Safety and Trust in Softgel Medications that Reach People in Over 50 Countries

English | 21 pages | February 2019 | IFC

Dec 12, 2018

Goodlife Pharmacy

Goodlife Pharmacy offers safe, high-quality medicine to consumers in Kenya and Uganda, including lower-income 'emerging consumers'. Ultimately, Goodlife aims to become a health hub—a one-stop-shop to meet basic primary health care needs through pharmaceuticals and health care services. In the four years since it was founded in 2014, Goodlife has become East Africa’s largest pharmacy chain.

Nov 15, 2018

CASE STUDY: Georgia Healthcare Group

Making Modern Healthcare Affordable in a Small Country

English | 30 pages | November 2018 | IFC

Sep 6, 2018

CASE STUDY: Saudi German Hospitals

Commitment to Quality Healthcare in War and Peace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)

English | 25 pages | September, 2018 | IFC

May 30, 2018

Factsheet: IFC's IQ-Healthcare Tool

Responding to global gaps in health care competence, IFC's IQ-Healthcare Tool—with the IQ standing for Improving Quality—helps health providers improve patient safety, align practices with global quality standards, and build safe health infrastructure. A diagnostic tool that operates at the network-wide and single-facility level, our service identifies quality gaps and cost-efficient solutions. To date, the IQ-Healthcare Tool has been used with more than 50 hospitals and clinics in nearly 20 countries. Responding to global gaps in health care competence, IFC's IQ-Healthcare Tool—with the IQ standing for Improving Quality—helps health providers improve patient safety, align practices with global quality standards, and build safe health infrastructure. A diagnostic tool that operates at the network-wide and single-facility level, our service identifies quality gaps and cost-efficient solutions. To date, the IQ-Healthcare Tool has been used with more than 50 hospitals and clinics in nearly 20 countries.

English | 2 Pages | © IFC, 2018|

Dec 14, 2017

Case Study: Creating the Largest Hospital Network in Brazil

See how an entrepreneur who sought to fill a void in Brazil’s market for health diagnostics developed the country’s largest independent provider of health services and made a difference in access to quality healthcare across the country.

English | 32 Pages | 2017 IFC|

May 2, 2017

CASE STUDY: Apollo—Creating Healthcare Markets

This case study explores how IFC client Apollo provides high-quality healthcare through an integrated network in India.

English | 28 Pages | May 2017 IFC

Apr 26, 2017

CASE STUDY: salauno—Creating an Inclusive Market for Eye Care

This case study features IFC client salauno (www.salauno.com.mx), a private provider of eye-surgery targeting low-income Mexicans. The company has forged an innovative partnership with the Mexican government and a local charity. Founded just six years ago, salauno performs 25,000 surgeries a year and has grown its staff to around 200.

English | 12 Pages | April 2017 | IFC|

Apr 26, 2017

salauno

salauno’s mission is to “eliminate needless blindness in Mexico” by providing affordable and accessible eye care services to patients of all income levels. In the first five years since its founding in 2011, the company has provided eye care to over 230,000 people and grown from one surgical center in Mexico City into a network of ten mid-sized Diagnostic Centers with a staff of over 200, offering a range of services throughout the Mexico City Metropolitan Area and the broader Valley of Mexico. For more information on salauno visit their website at http://www.salauno.com.mx/.

Mar 30, 2017

CASE STUDY: MedLife—Changing the Culture of Healthcare in Romania

This case study explores how IFC client MedLife pioneered the creation of an integrated healthcare network in Romania.

English | 21 Pages | March 2017 | IFC|

Mar 1, 2017

Healthcare Market Assessment | East Asia 2016

With a focus on five countries—Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines—this publication summarizes the findings of a study aimed at providing tools and analysis to better engage with these markets for improved health outcomes. It explores the problems that public health systems face, and the opportunities for the private sector.

English | 20 Pages | 2017, IFC|

Mar 1, 2017

Corporación Grupo Fybeca S.A. (GPF)

Fybeca a pharmaceutical retailer with a history of innovation, saw an opportunity to complement its high-end pharmacy chain, Fybeca, with a down market chain so that customers could access quality medicines at economical prices. In 2000, GPF launched SanaSana — its first pharmacy for low-income customers.

Feb 21, 2017

Private Sector Pharmaceutical Distribution and Retailing in Emerging Markets

New investment opportunities in the pharma sector arise as the lifestyle-related chronic diseases and rising incomes are changing the healthcare landscape in emerging markets, this IFC-Accenture study finds. Also, the drug distribution channels are too fragmented and have too many layers, making it harder than it should be for patients to access affordable, life-saving medications.

English | 20 Pages | 2017, IFC|

Jan 31, 2017

CASE STUDY: GHIF—Saving the Lives of the Most Vulnerable

GHIF is a social impact fund launched in 2012 by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to finance the development of drugs, vaccines, and diagnostic tests for diseases that primarily affect low- and middle-income countries. The Gates Foundation structured GHIF to emphasize financial sustainability alongside social impact, measured by lives saved and improved. IFC invested $10 million, which helped GHIF attract a total of $108 million of capital from a diverse group of investors. In just two years since raising capital, GHIF has invested in seven companies for the development and manufacture of treatments for diseases such as cholera, river blindness, and parasitic worm infections, as well as diagnostic tests for tuberculosis, HIV, malaria, dengue, preeclampsia, and gestational diabetes. By the end of 2016, three portfolio companies had commercialized products.

English | 32 Pages | 2017, IFC|

Dec 16, 2016

Case Study Ascendis Health: Bringing High-Quality Generic Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices to over 100 Countries

Ascendis Health is a South African company producing a range of health care products aimed at enabling a holistic approach to health, combining prevention and treatment. Its medical device division imports medical equipment and offers maintenance services in developing countries. Its pharmaceutical division distributes over 850 generic medications in emerging markets. In 2016, IFC made a $30 million investment in Ascendis to support its acquisition of a European generic pharmaceutical maker, with the goal of expanding access to affordable medications in developing countries.

English | 24 Pages | 2016, IFC|

Sep 16, 2016

NephroPlus

NephroCare Health Services Private Limited (NephroPlus) is a provider network of kidney dialysis services across 15 states in India. Founded in 2010, NephroPlus delivers these services in large metropolitan areas as well as underserved, small cities at prices that are 30 to 40 percent lower than hospitals. As of 2015, the company has 75 centers across India that service more than 6,000 patients and provide approximately 50,000 dialysis treatments each month. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.