The multispecialty community provider (MCP) emerging care model and contract framework

Across the country, NHS leaders have been developing sustainability and transformation plans (STPs) to implement the NHS Five Year Forward View. Nearly all of the STPs involve creating new models of accountable care provision.  Some are planning MCPs, others the bigger primary and acute care systems (PACS) model, under which all hospital services are also included under a single  form of integrated provision. The underlying logic of an MCP is that by focusing on prevention and redesigning care, it is possible to improve health and wellbeing, achieve better quality, reduce  avoidable hospital admissions and elective activity, and unlock more efficient ways of delivering care.

This document defines what being a multispecialty community provider (MCP) means by assembling features from the 14 MCP vanguards into a common framework.

Making it Easier: A Health Literacy Action Plan for Scotland

Making it Easier- a health literacy plan for Scotland 2017-25, builds on the current learning about health literacy and aims to remove and prevent barriers. Health literacy is the degree to ehich individuals have the capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropiate health decisions

The new guidance aims to improve design and delivery of services founded on the following themes: 

- equal access

- shared decision-making

- people supported to live and die well on their own terms with the health conditions they have

Governing Collaborative Healthcare Improvement: Lessons From an Atlantic Canadian Case

The Atlantic Healthcare Collaboration for Innovation and Improvement in Chronic Disease (AHC) Quality Improvement Collaborative (QIC) in Eastern Canada provided an approach to spur system-level reform across multiple health systems for patients and families living with chronic disease. Developed and led by senior executives with a unique governance approach and involving clinical front-line teams, the AHC serves as a practical example of leadership creating and driving momentum for achieving success in collaborative health system improvements 

Ghana's community-based primary health care: Why women and children are ‘disadvantaged’ by its implementation

Policy analysis on why women and children in low- and middle- income settings are still disadvantaged by access to appropiate care despite Primary Health Care (PHC) programmes implementation is limited. Drawing on the street- level bureaucracy theory, this article explored how and why frontline providers (FLP) actions on their own and in interaction with health system factors shape Ghana´s community-based PHC implementation to the disadvantage of women and children accessing and using health services. 

Implementing health care reform: implications for performance of public hospitals in central Ethiopia

Understanding the way health care reforms have succeeded or failed thus far would help policy makers cater continued reformefforts in the future and provides insight into possible levels of improvementin the health care system. This work aims to assess and describe the implications of health care reform on the performance of public hospitals in central Ethiopia.

Future of Digital Health Systems in the European Region

The WHO Symposium on the Future of Digital Health Systems in the European Region will bring together evidence and experience to show how governments and organizations can adopt digital health to reduce inequalities and improve the health and well-being of populations.

The Symposium will help policy-makers prepare for the digitalization of health systems by sharing country experiences of:

• - How digital health and emerging innovations are being used to strengthen national health systems
• - Digital health activities currently underway
• - How digital technologies can empower individuals and health-care workers.

The multispecialty community provider (MCP) emerging care model and contract framework

Across the country, NHS leaders have been developing sustainability and transformation plans (STPs) to implement the NHS Five Year Forward View. Nearly all of the STPs involve creating new models of accountable care provision.  Some are planning MCPs, others the bigger primary and acute care systems (PACS) model, under which all hospital services are also included under a single  form of integrated provision. The underlying logic of an MCP is that by focusing on prevention and redesigning care, it is possible to improve health and wellbeing, achieve better quality, reduce  avoidable hospital admissions and elective activity, and unlock more efficient ways of delivering care.

This document defines what being a multispecialty community provider (MCP) means by assembling features from the 14 MCP vanguards into a common framework.

Improving Integrated Care: Can Implementation Science Unlock the ‘Black Box’ of Complexities?

In a previous IJIC editorial they reflected on the fact that we have yet to make any significant breakthrough to understand the implementation and sustainability of complex service innovations that so characterise the development of integrated care programmes [1]. Without such knowledge we might be able to explain the core building blocks of integrated care systems, but we cannot adequately explain the intricacies of effective implementation nor fully understand the causes of the outcomes we observe. This article show how this is not simply a methodological problem but reflects a more deep-rooted challenge in the lack of value that is placed both in the commissioning of such research and the findings that are produced.

A qualitative appraisal of stakeholders’ perspectives of a community-based primary health care program in rural Ghana

The Ghana Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) initiative is a national strategy for improving access to primary health care services for underserved communities. Following a successful trial in the North Eastern part of the country, CHPS was adopted as Ghana’s flagship programme for achieving the Universal Health Coverage. Recent empirical evidence suggests, however, that scale-up of CHPS has not necessarily replicated the successes of the pilot study. This study examines the community’s perspective of the performance of CHPS and how the scale up could potentially align with the original experimental study.

Patient-Centered Care: An Examination of Provider–Patient Communication Over Time

The aim was to examine the quality of provider communication over time considering the increasing emphasis on patient-centered care (PCC). Patient-centered care has been shown to have a positive impact on health outcomes, care experiences, quality-of-life, as well as decreased costs. Given this emphasis, it expect that provider–patient communication has improved over time.

From self-assessment to knowledge transfer and improvement in integrated care: How to engage voluntary sector in the provision of integrated care?

Integrated care is a recognised solution to address the challenge of ageing population. Hence, it is important to commit to opportunities that increase the readiness and capacity of regions to implement integrated care. Knowledge transfer has been greatly recognised as an effective enabler to access existing evidence and learning on integrated care. It encompasses a very broad range of activities to support mutually beneficial collaborations between the interested stakeholders. 

Should community pharmacy be 'linked'? The perceptions of including community pharmacy in an integrated care model in Ontario, Canada

Integrated care models are becoming more frequent in various health systems to provide quality coordinated care, with the aim of improving patient outcomes and costs. Many patients under an integrated care model present with complex health and social needs requiring more sophisticated care coordination. 

Exploring improvement plans of fourteen European integrated care sites for older people with complex needs

Integrated care programmes are increasingly being put in place to provide care to older people living at home. However, knowledge about further improving integrated care is limited. In fourteen integrated care sites in Europe, plans to improve existing ways of working were designed, implemented and evaluated to enlarge the understanding of what works and with what outcomes when improving integrated care. This paper provides insight into the existing ways that the sites were working with respect to integrated care, their perceived difficulties and their plans for working towards improvement. 

Using an evidence-based safety approach to develop China’s road safety strategies

Road accidents are a major global public safety and health problem. Presently, many countries such as China urgently need to find better strategies to improve their road safety. This paper has two key objectives, which are: (i) to propose potential solutions to improve China’s road safety, and (ii) to provide China and other countries with helpful evidence for their future road safety.

Unknown makes unloved—A case study on improving integrated health and social care in the Netherlands using a participatory approach

Many initiatives integrating health and social care have been implemented in order to provide adequate care and support to older people living at home. Further development of existing initiatives requires iterative processes of developing, implementing and evaluating improvements to current practice. This case study provides insight into the process of improving an existing integrated care initiative in the Netherlands. Using a participatory approach, researchers and local stakeholders collaborated to develop and implement activities to further improve collaboration between health and social care professionals. Improvement activities included interprofessional meetings focussing on reflection and mutual learning and workplace visits. Researchers evaluated the improvement process, using data triangulation of multiple qualitative and quantitative data sources. 

Comparative case studies in integrated care implementation from across the globe: a quest for action

Integrated care is the coordination of general and behavioral health and is a highly promising and practical approach to improving healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. While there is growing interest and investment in integrated care implementation internationally, there are no formal guidelines for integrated care implementation applicable to diverse healthcare systems. Furthermore, there is a complex interplay of factors at multiple levels of influence that are necessary for successful implementation of integrated care in health systems

Integrating health care in Australia: a qualitative evaluation

With aging populations, a growing prevalence of chronic illnesses, higher expectations for quality care and rising costs within limited health budgets, integration of healthcare is seen as a solution to these challenges. Integrated healthcare aims to overcome barriers between primary and secondary care and other disconnected patient services to improve access, continuity and quality of care. Many people in Australia are admitted to hospital for chronic illnesses that could be prevented or managed in the community. Western Sydney has high rates of diabetes, heart and respiratory diseases and the NSW State Ministry of Health has implemented key strategies through the Western Sydney Integrated Care Program (WSICP) to enhance primary care and the outcomes and experiences of patients with these illnesses.

The importance of power, context and agency in improving patient experience through a patient and family centred care approach

Research shows that the way that healthcare staff experience their job impacts on their individual performance, patient experience and outcomes as well as on the performance of organisations. This article builds on this literature by investigating, with multi-disciplinary clinical teams as well as patients and relatives, what factors help or hinder changes designed to improve patient experience.

Effects of Training Health Workers in Integrated Management of Childhood Illness on Quality of Care for Under-5 Children in Primary Healthcare Facilities in Afghanistan

Training courses in integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI) have been conducted for health workers for nearly one and half decades in Afghanistan. The objective of the training courses is to improve quality of care in terms of health workers communication skills and clinical performance when they provide health services for under-5 children in public healthcare facilities. This paper presents the findings on the effects of IMCI training courses on quality of care in public primary healthcare facilities in Afghanistan.

Let's Get Real: Patient Partnership to Advance Integrated Care

Integrated Care is about bringing together a collaboration of organizations and their staff to coordinate services around patients in order to improve health and well-being outcomes and overall satisfaction with services. Integration is context driven; it requires shared vision, trusting relationships, resources and alignment across health and social service ecosystems.

This webinar will bring together patient partners and health leaders who attended the first-ever North American Conference on Integrated Care and are advancing integrated people-centred health systems (#NACIC2021).

Join this patient and family advisor-led panel to learn:

1. Insights from the recent NACIC conference: what worked, how to continue to spark engagement

2. The importance of building trust and creating safer spaces-examples that worked from your experience, and

3. How patient and family advisors can partner to advance integrated care systems.