A major research project has been launched to assess the role played by health co-ops in different national welfare systems.
The International Health Co-operative Organisation (IHCO) is working with the European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises (Euricse) on the project.
The first stage of the five-year project covers 15 countries: Canada, USA, Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Russia, Australia.
Six national case studies will be analysed in greater depth, so as to better understand particular organisational typologies.
Researchers will look at members and users of health co-ops to provide an estimate of the number of people served globally, and will carry out quantitative and qualitative analysis on health co-ops and the systems in which they operate.
A dataset and report will be issued on the completion of each stage of the project, with the first due for presentation at the General Assembly in Kuala Lumpur on November 2017.
Related: Case study of the National Health Co-operative of Canberra
The primary objective is to assess the contribution of healthcare co-ops and mutuals in promoting public health and well-being.
The specific objectives are:
- To determine the main typologies of co-operative organisations devoted to the provision of health-related services
- To assess how mutuals and co-operatives operate in different national welfare systems
- To estimate the number of users accessing co-operative health services
Researchers will collect and integrate official figures on the various types of co-ops and gather hoc data through a short questionnaire sent to to co-operative federations.
This data will be combined with interviews with key informants, which will look at issues that emerge from the questionnaires.
