Introducing family medicine in Tanzania: strengthening primary health care through the 5 Cs—advocacy through a deliberative dialogue symposium-a case study of multinational academic collaboration

Abstract

Tanzania is currently advancing universal health coverage (UHC) through the 2026 launch of its Universal Health Insurance scheme, creating a critical policy window to strengthen primary health care (PHC). This paper reflects on the first Family Medicine Symposium in Morogoro (January 2026), a milestone event designed to advocate for the integration of Family Medicine (FM) into the national health system. Utilizing a deliberative dialogue approach, the symposium convened 51 diverse stakeholders—including Tanzanian policymakers and academic partners from eight countries—to examine FM through the “5 Cs” framework: first-contact access, continuity, comprehensiveness, coordination, and person-centered care. The event featured expert presentations, case vignettes, and facilitated discussions structured around the 5 Cs. In addition to the 5 Cs we also discussed training, financing, and workforce transitions. We describe a unique, multinational, multidisciplinary and informal academic partnership that drove this initiative. Rather than following rigid, highly resourced programmatic frameworks, this collaboration was relationship-driven, built on 3 years of trust-building and the contextual expertise of international partners with prior lived experience in Tanzania. While the absence of immediate formal policy commitments remains a limitation, the engagement established a vital transnational platform for collective advocacy. This paper highlights how informal, context-sensitive partnerships can align FM educational initiatives with health system needs to advance PHC transformation.