The General Administration Department, Government of Bihar, India, invited Maulik Chokshi, Global Director – Health System Research and Policy at ACCESS Health International, to deliver the inaugural address at the Bihar Administrative Week on 12 July 2025. His session, “Understanding Health Systems: How building blocks work together in achieving health outcomes,” addressed a central question in health governance: how can systems deliver not only care, but also resilience and equity?
Better health outcomes arise not only from better medicines or skilled doctors, but from stronger systems that bring every element together. Mr. Chokshi emphasized that the six building blocks of health systems – service delivery, workforce, information, financing, access to medicines, and governance – are deeply interconnected. Strengthening these linkages, rather than addressing them in isolation, is essential for achieving equitable outcomes. His remarks highlighted that systems thinking is not merely an academic framework but a practical necessity for policymakers and administrators.
This dialogue offered a timely reminder: resilient health systems are measured not only by how they perform on their best days, but by how effectively they safeguard people on their worst. The session underscores the growing resonance of systems thinking in India’s governance and health policy discourse.
The session, conducted under the broader Mission Karamyogi, is available on the Karamyogi Bharat YouTube channel here.