May 23, 2016 Europe Practice

Disparity reduction strategy in Israel’s Clalit Health Services

Creation of a composite disparity score allowed health disparities in Clalit Health Services to be identified, assessed and then targeted for intervention; top-down leadership from senior management within Clalit Health Services was essential for creating the conditions needed for change; locally-designed initiatives provided tailored solutions for achieving targets set by senior management; capitalizing on preexisting strengths and resources minimized the need for costly investments; data-driven performance measures were the backbone of the initiative and provided evidence of the need for intervention, helped incentivize performance improvements and allowed monitoring and evaluation of progress; regular feedback and monitoring fostered a culture of continuous learning and evidence-based performance improvement.

Aug. 30, 2016 Europe Practice

Establishing a unified emergency medical service in Latvia

Latvia’s 39 separate emergency service organizations were merged to form the single, centralized State Emergency Medical Service; implementing a unified structure for the provision of prehospital emergency medical services reduced fragmentation, standardized care and improved the coordination of services; formalizing provider training and education embedded new practices as the professional norm and helped ensure high-quality care delivery according to the guidelines in place; strong national leadership, along with a clear narrative and communication plan, helped gain stakeholder support for the initiative; widespread population support was secured by making services available free of charge.