Centre for Health Policy and Systems
About the Centre
The Centre for Health Policy and Systems (CHPS) at Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics (GIPE) was established on May 03, 2022 to consolidate Gokhale Institute’s portfolio of work on health policy and systems into a coherent whole. The centre will build upon the current work and expand the portfolio on health policy and systems (research, policy, and practice) to better engage with the current policy and scholarly discussions on universal and equitable health coverage in India and beyond.
The CHPS conducts research to inform and influence policies and systems (health and beyond) to pursue population health goals through improving effectiveness, equity, and efficiency of health systems. The CHPS investigates how health care is organized, delivered, financed, and used; how health policies are prioritized, developed, and implemented; and how and why health systems do or do not generate health and wider social goals. The CHPS translates research into action to strengthen health systems such that they can better achieve their goals. The work at CHPS is informed by a wide set of theories, frameworks, and tools, drawn from a range of disciplines, to examine and test how different elements of systems (not just health, but broader social systems) – actors, functions, and their relationships – can interact (or not) and fit together (or not) to achieve health system goals.
The centre will actively convene and leverage the diverse expertise at Gokhale Institute and its partners to extend the policy and scholarly discussions on universal and equitable health coverage in India and beyond.
Team CHPS
Prof Anjali Radkar
Professor, Dean of Academic Affairs
Head, CS SE&IP
Email: anjali.radkar@gipe.ac.in
Contact: 216, Main Building Ext: 334
Professor Anjali Radkar is a demographer–statistician and has designed the M.Sc. (Population Studies and Health Economics) program at Gokhale Institute. She teaches Population Size, Structure; Population and Health Policy and Research Methodology. Her research interests are age-sex structure, workforce participation, maternal and child health, mortality, morbidity and nutrition in India, and health systems research.
Prof Sumit Kane
Professor, Nossal Institute for Global Health, Melbourne School Of Population And Global Health, The
University Of Melbourne, Australia
Professorial Fellow, Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, BMCC Road, Pune, India
E: Sumit.Kane@gipe.ac.in ; Sumit.Kane@unimelb.edu.au
Profile Page: https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/profile/817837-sumit-kane
Professor Sumit Kane’s research focus is on the equity, quality, and responsiveness of low-and-middle-income country health systems. In his inquiries, he takes a critical, reflexive stance to examine issues and experiences from multiple perspectives (social, systems, operational), always with a view to inform the development of feasible solutions.
Dr Mayuri Samant
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, BMCC Road, Pune, India
Email: mayuri.samant@gipe.ac.in
Contact: UGC, Building Ext: 118
Dr. Mayuri Samant holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune. Her areas of research include Gender studies, Caste, Family, and Health studies. Her research approach towards research is critical and interdisciplinary. She has extensive experience in carrying out qualitative research in Social Science and Public Health.
Ms. Madhura Joshi
Research Associate, Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, BMCC Road, Pune, India
Email: madhura.joshi@gipe.ac.in
Contact: UGC, Building Ext: 118
Madhura is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Health Sciences from Tampere University, Finland. She holds an MPhil in Sociology from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. Her areas of interest are higher education, cultural studies, and health.
Ms. Sanjana Santosh
Research Associate, Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, BMCC Road, Pune, India
Email: sanjana.santosh@gipe.ac.in
Contact: UGC, Building Ext: 118
Sanjana is a research professional with an MA in Development from Azim Premji University, Bangalore. She has experience in qualitative research in the field of Health, Sociology and Public Governance.
Completed Projects
Strengthening Growth Monitoring and Promotion through the Integrated Child Development Services in Maharashtra 2014-2015
By UNICEF and Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics
Principal Investigator: Prof. Anjali Radkar
The study was aimed at assessing the present status of growth monitoring and promotion activities implemented through ICDS Anganwadi centers at 3 sites, Nandurbar, rural areas of district Ahmednagar, and urban slums in Mumbai using qualitative observations and semi-structured interview methods.
Caesarean-section deliveries in Bhandara District. 2015-2016
By Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, and Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics
Principal Investigator: Prof. Anjali Radkar
This is study on C-section deliveries and its determinants. Among the districts of Maharashtra, the share is highest in Bhandara so this exploratory study was designed to gain insights into reasons behind it.
Health-seeking behaviour in four Indian states.2018-2023
By University Of Melbourne (funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation)
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Anjali Radkar, Prof. Barbara McPake
This multi-method study and multi-site focused ethnographic inquiry examines the care-seeking journeys of patients suffering from chronic illnesses in 4 Indian states viz. Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab and Tamil Nadu.
Researching trust relations in health systems 2016 – Ongoing
By University of Melbourne, Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, and University of Kent, UK
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Anjali Radkar, Prof. Michael Calnan
The study entails a sociological examination of trust relations in the health system with a view to identify opportunities and means to maintain and rebuild trust in the health system and the medical profession.
Qualitative study on ASHA 2018-2020
By Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics and University of Melbourne
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Anjali Radkar
This was a qualitative case study of the Indian CHW program (CHWs are called accredited social health activists: ASHAs). It was aimed to explore how ASHAs experience being CHWs, and what shapes their experience and performance.
Ongoing Projects
Doctors under siege: Making sense of the rising incidents of violence against doctors in India.2021-2024
By Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, University of Melbourne, The School of Social Policy & Social Research, University of Kent, UK, and the University of Tampere, Finland. (Funded by the Joint Health Systems Research Initiative, UK)
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Anjali Radkar, Prof. Michael Calnan, Prof. Salla Atkins.
The study involves a sociological examination to reveal what might underpin and explain the rising incidents of violence against doctors in India. The study also tries to address what do the rising incidents of violent attacks on doctors in India imply for the social contract between the medical profession and society.
Exploring pathways to repairing and restoring trust in the health system. 2018-2023
By Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, University of Melbourne, and University of Kent, UK
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Anjali Radkar, Prof. Michael Calnan
How do individuals (and their families) cope with major chronic illnesses in the urban context in India? 2020-2025
By Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, University of Melbourne (Funded by the Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation, India)
Principal Investigators: Prof. Sumit Kane, Prof. Barbara McPake
The study seeks to explore the social impact as well as coping strategies adopted by individuals and households in the face of major illnesses in the urban context. We will examine how people draw on both household-level resources (financial, social, network, and moral) and also on care providers to cope with the major illnesses they encounter.
Study of urban community health workers in Pune city. 2023-2025
Principal Investigator: Prof. Sumit Kane
The aim of the study is to explore the challenges faced by urban ASHAs in Pune city.
Managing problematic menstruation in the profession of policewomen in India: A medical-sociological inquiry
By Madhura Joshi (Ph.D. project at Tampere University, Finland)
The study will analyse the implications of problematic menstruation i.e., heavy, unpredictable, and painful bleeding on policewomen’s health and professional career. The study will adopt a mixed methods approach, where surveys and qualitative interviews will be conducted with the aim to generate insights that can inform policies and practices related to women’s health.
Recent Publications
- Doctor G: Story of finding a ‘Doctor’s touch’. 2023. Doing Sociology. 13th March (Read more)
- Dirghakalin ajarane grasta rugnancha upcharasathicha na sampnara pravas. 2022.Indie Journal.1st November (Read more)
- Kane S, Joshi M, Desai S, Mahal A, McPake B. 2022. People’s care seeking journey for a chronic illness in rural India: Implications for policy and practice. Journal of Social Science and Medicine. Sep 23. Volume 312 (Read more)
- Kane S, Radkar A, Gadgil M, McPake B. Community Health Workers as Influential Health System Actors and not “Just Another Pair Of Hands”. Int J Health Policy Manag. 2021 Aug 1;10(8):465-474. doi: 10.34172/ijhpm.2020.58. PMID: 32610755; PMCID: PMC9056200
- Calnan, M., Kane, S. 2019. Trust and the regulation of health systems: insights from India., in: Chamberlain, J. M., Dent, M., Saks, M., (Eds.) Professional health regulation in the public interest. Bristol University Press; Policy Press (Read more)
- Kane, S., Calnan, M., 2016. Erosion of Trust in the Medical Profession in India: Time for Doctors to Act. International Journal of Health Policy and Management. 5 (x), 1-4 (Read more)
- Kane, S, Calnan M, Radkar A. 2015. Trust and trust relations from the providers’ perspective: the case of the healthcare system in India. Indian J Med Ethics. 12(3): 157-68 (Read more)
- Sanjana Santosh (2022, May 10). Book Review: Birthright by Vaasanthi, translated by Vasantha Surya [Online]. The Sociological Review Magazine (Read more)
