I. Why This Guidebook?

This guidebook is intended to help government and public sector organizations in developing a public-private partnership (PPP) project or enterprise in hospital management. The lessons and insights shared here are based on actual experiences of a technical assistance team in Sarangani and Camarines Norte provinces (in the Philippines) in the development of PPPs in hospital management in the preparatory stage. While this guidebook is mostly based on experiences with local governments in the Philippines, readers from both the public and private sectors and outside the Philippines will find the insights that it contains to be useful, and in many instances, directly applicable.1

The development of a PPP in hospital management is a complex task. Hospital management considers the distinct separation of general administration from clinical management, with the former requiring experts in general management concerns such as finance, administration, and marketing, among others, while the latter in medical and clinical care matters. The two aspects must coordinate. The broad role of general management is to provide the needed supplies and ancillary services so that the clinical care staff can effectively and safely deliver health services.

This guidebook serves as a simple road map in the development of a PPP in hospital management. However, users can develop their own procedures based on local conditions and resources. The steps and procedures discussed here are not to be treated as absolute rules but rather as recommendations and "guideposts" meant to be further enhanced, modified, and customized according to the needs and aspirations of specific users.

This guidebook was specifically developed for organizations that wish to address public health care needs through the adoption of PPPs. It was developed with the hope that it will inspire and encourage more organizations toward the development and implementation of their own PPP programs and enterprises in health.

Further discussions on PPP in health are found in the annexes of the final report on the ADB technical assistance project, Public-Private Partnership in Health in the Philippines. For further information and support, readers may contact the Credit for Better Health Care Project (CBHCP) of the Development Bank of the Philippines or the Asian Development Bank.

This is an evolving document that may be continuously enhanced based on new lessons and experiences. Therefore, insights, comments, and suggestions that may help in making this document more useful and practical are welcome. Feedback may be sent through emasaki@adb.org.

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1 The authors intended to make this guidebook as universal or generic as possible with a caveat that some assumptions and recommendations may not be legally applicable or consistent with policies of certain countries. Readers are advised to refer to their country regulations and practices in the adoption or application of PPP programs and projects.