Healtcare Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Abstract
Health cooperatives (the model that was developed in Serbia in the 19th century) can be considered as “Serbian invention” and the first model of that kind (according to available documentation). Health cooperatives had an immense impact on society, as those cooperatives used to solve numerous healthcare, public health, educational, demographic, and other problems after the First World War (and previous Balkan wars 1912–1913). That concept was so successful that numerous delegations from the USA to India and from Poland to Japan visited Serbia to understand the concept and then to transfer it to their home countries. Historically looking, there are not so many innovative solutions (especially in the area of state policy and administration) that have been transferred from Serbia to the developed western countries, but health cooperatives were such phenomena. In order to create health cooperatives, Serbian experts worked together with politicians, administrative state bodies, professional elites, and the population itself. The model was recognized as the one that responded successfully to the problems Serbia was facing at that time (19th and early 20th century). It seems that history as science did not recognize the importance of health cooperatives in an adequate way, and its overall impact on society as well as its international contribution. This scientific monograph represents The Initiative for Opening Health Cooperatives in the Republic of Serbia (further on: The Initiative) submitted to the Parliament of the Republic of Serbia. The initiative is based on many years of active research on the topic of health cooperatives by the author. The initiative was submitted to the Parliament in order to emphasize the importance of health cooperatives today, historical aspects of cooperatives in Serbia, and to request a public hearing on this emerging topic. This initiative is the first of its kind since 1949 when health cooperatives in Serbia were abolished and included in the public health care system. Therefore, this should be considered as the second such initiative having in mind the first initiative in 1921 when there was noted spreading of health cooperatives after the First World War. This scientific monograph is created as a longitudinal study of organizational change of health cooperatives looking from the perspective of a health economist. Although it is rich with data and relevant sources, it is essential that history experts would also deal with this topic in the future using a specific methodology and historical analysis, which should additionally contribute to a better understanding of this topic. The fact is that health cooperatives were particularly important for rural areas at that time that were more affected by public health issues compared to urban areas. The literature on those topics is not largely developed, especially looking at the last few decades – which leaves considerable room for further research. New models of health cooperatives have been developed in modern societies (especially looking from the organizational and business perspective), and the model that was mainly discussed in this research (developed in Serbia in the 19th century) is still present in a similar form in India and Brazil. This research is particularly interested in the period between 1921 and 1949. Today, the Law on Cooperatives of the Republic of Serbia (2015) allows forming health cooperatives in the Republic of Serbia – but it is a question why, as there have been no health cooperatives developed since 1949. Health cooperatives formed in the 19th century and later in the territory of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (the so-called “Serbian Model of Health Cooperatives”) were definitely a turning point in the way the health system of that time functioned. Besides, it was a kind of “invention” that did not exist in this form in the world, as evidenced by numerous materials on the founding and taking over of such a model worldwide (Japan, the United States, India, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, and other countries that initiated the creation of parts of the system or the entire cooperative healthcare system in their territories in the period between the two wars). The establishment of this form of cooperative society was facilitated by the coherence and joint initiatives of all relevant stakeholders – most notably the Ministry of Public Health, the People’s Movements and international organizations, and the American Child Welfare Association of America – which have played a vital role. This organization participated in the development of the health cooperatives from an idea to the very realization and provided both advisory and financial assistance. The difficult public health situation that emerged even before the First World War (two Balkan wars) and especially after that war, also initiated the launch of health cooperatives 1. ABOUT THE INITIATIVE – OBJECTIVES AND RELEVANCE The initiative of Dr. Milorad Stamenovic to promote the work and establishment of health cooperatives in the Republic of Serbia points to the proposal to hold a public hearing in the Parliament of the Republic of Serbia regarding the importance of a modern form of association in health cooperatives in accordance with global trends. One of the goals is to point out and explain the legal framework governing the work of cooperatives and health institutions in order to enable the formation and operation of different business models of modern health cooperatives. This initiative also aims to point out to the recommendations to the Government of the Republic of Serbia on the importance of developing this form of association, which would consider forms of public-cooperative partnership and support of the Government in establishing a health-cooperative movement in the Republic of Serbia, with the primary goal of providing better and more accessible health care at the state level. This initiative also highlights the desirable changes in the health system of the Republic of Serbia, which, like many other systems, faces certain problems of sustainability and further development.