Panama Health Equity and Performance Improvement Project Description Development Challenge Purpose: Provide better health quality for mothers Panama's rural poor and indigenous communities experience and their children much worse health outcomes than the rest of the population. Expected Results (include): For example, mortality rates for children under five years old - Provide 200,000 beneficiaries from 47 can be as have reached 2.4 higher than the national average underserved rural communities access to basic of 19.9 deaths per 1,000 live births. health care through these mobile health units to improve mother and child health care, including pregnant women completing at least 3 prenatal. - Provide more babies with less than 1 year of age Project Description with complete vaccination records, and have more In 2008, the World Bank supported Panama's Health Equity births attended by skilled personnel. and Performance Improvement Project. The program uses IBRD Financing: $40 million mobile health teams to provide the rural poor with continuous access to a package of health services known to improve mother and child health care. The mobile health teams were contracted with the Ministry of Health using a payment scheme that provided them incentives to reach more under- served rural populations. Photo: © Gerardo Pesantez / World Bank For more information: http://www.worldbank.org/projects/P106445/health-equity-performance-improvement-project?lang=en 61