REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MAGELANG -- The government will accredit public health service centers (puskesmas) in order to improve health services in the country, Deputy Health Minister Ali Ghufron Mukti stated.

"As one of the first health service contacts, Puskesmas must provide the best possible customer-oriented services, so that patients are satisfied," he said here on Saturday.

He made the remarks after delivering a keynote address at the Prime Service Jambore held by the Social Security Management Board for the health sector of Central Java and Yogyakarta Regional Division.

The government will establish a team to assess whether Puskesmas will pass the accreditation, he said.

"If the services still fall short of expectation, then analyze as to what the Puskesmas can do to improve. This is part of continuous improvement to be done in such way that the public is satisfied with primary services first," he emphasized.

The health ministry is drawing up a guide to accrediting Puskesmas, hoping the project could be started in 2015 at the latest, he noted.

The ministry is still holding discussions on who will bear accreditation cost, he said.

"Personally, I do not want Puskesmas to bear the cost. I am afraid if they pay assessors, it will result in conflict of interest. If possible, the government should bear the cost, so no conflict of interest ensues," he added.

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