IPCHS Practices

Learn from real-life experiences with health services reform. We distinguish three types: emerging, promising and leading practices. Share your practice by clicking "Add practice".

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Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Reorienting the model of care, Coordinating services within and across sectors

Community support programmes for people affected by dementia in Athens, Greece

The nonprofit organization AAADRD opened four day care centres across Athens to directly provide support services to people affected by dementia. The organization also campaigned extensively to gain attention for their cause and pushed the government to develop a national dementia action plan; highly motivated actors directly affected by dementia or working in related fields played an important role in identifying and understanding service delivery gaps; as a specialized organization, AAADRD was able to mobilize a large network of dedicated supporters. Connections established with similar organizations furthered advocacy efforts; sustainability of the initiative relies on growing government commitment, securing resources ...

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Strengthening governance and accountability, Reorienting the model of care, Creating an enabling environment

Defining and standardizing primary care in Georgia

Government reforms aiming to establish universal health care, increase state involvement in the health system and strengthen regulation have been introduced; articulating a clear government vision ensured a strong foundation on which to build reforms; learning from previous experiences and seeking expertise from international partners helped the initiative avoid potential difficulties; inclusion of stakeholders in the design process helped build local consensus for change; following the strategy development process, detailed plans were drawn up to guide proposed reforms.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Reorienting the model of care, Creating an enabling environment

Advancing the role of nurses in Finland to improve patients’ access to care

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health promoted the shift of responsibilities from physicians to nurses through implementing supportive policies, legislation and incentives; partnerships and international networks facilitated information exchanges and offered inspiration for activities during the initiative’s design; national legislation provided the necessary framework for aligning changes in the professional scope of practice for nurses; the development of postgraduate advanced nursing programmes in partnership with universities supported the sustainability of the initiative and ensured the continuing development of nursing skills; advancing nursing roles contributed to professional empowerment and improved workplace well-being for both nurses and physicians.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Reorienting the model of care, Coordinating services within and across sectors

Telerehabilitation for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Denmark

A pilot programme to test home-based telerehabilitation for COPD patients was designed and implemented by researchers at Aalborg University; a supportive political and legislative environment provided a platform for furthering the development of e-health and telemedicine; partnerships with stakeholders outside the health sector supported the development of telemedicine and helped drive service delivery transformations; patients were given a more active role in care and new collaborative partnerships between patients and providers were developed; success of the initial pilot led to a larger-scale study with greater involvement of regional and municipal actors.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Reorienting the model of care, Coordinating services within and across sectors

Implementing targeted cancer screening programmes in the Czech Republic

The Ministry of Health developed a national cancer screening programme to increase population uptake of existing screening services. Through this programme, health insurance companies proactively send at-risk enrolees personalized invitations to participate in cancer screenings; strong Ministerial leadership provided an overarching direction for the initiative, promoting alignment across key stakeholders; use of available data helped identify key problems and supported tailoring of activities to meet observed gaps in service delivery; national information campaigns, run through various media channels, supported efforts by educating the public on the importance of cancer screenings; the initiative prioritized a proactive approach to addressing cancer mortality ...

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Strengthening governance and accountability, Coordinating services within and across sectors, Creating an enabling environment

Developing an integrated e-health system in Croatia to drive care improvements

An electronic Central Health Information System (CEZIH) was introduced by the government to connect stakeholders and provide real-time data on patients and providers; a strong government commitment and top-down leadership established the necessary conditions for the widespread adoption of e-health; data collected through the e-health system helped drive performance improvements; a new payment model for primary care providers was introduced and realigned financial incentives encouraged positive changes in clinical practice; ongoing trainings supported providers to uptake and capitalize on new technologies; a patient e-portal helped engage patients in their own care.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Reorienting the model of care, Coordinating services within and across sectors, Creating an enabling environment

Introducing home care services in Bulgaria

The introduction of home care services was proposed as a patient-oriented solution for ensuring appropriate service provision closer to home; a pilot approach allowed the gradual rollout and testing of an existing home care model being implemented abroad, which was adapted to meet the Bulgarian context; efforts to introduce home care included creating new roles and responsibilities for the health workforce and developing information and communication resources; establishing the necessary health system conditions, including the development of a supportive legal framework, is an important area of focus for advancing the sustainability and scale of the current transformations.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Strengthening governance and accountability, Reorienting the model of care, Creating an enabling environment

Shifting towards community-oriented mental health care in Belgium

Changes to legislation, policy and care guidelines at the national level guided mental health reform and government funding was made available to promote the implementation of local community mental health projects aligned with the new national vision for mental health; top-down support for bottom-up ideas ensured both the necessary resources and local ownership needed to optimize mental health reform; a supportive legislative framework helped solidify a common vision for mental health reform, providing a unified focus for local efforts to align with; space for experimentation in the delivery of mental health care was allowed for, motivating locally-adapted projects and sparking ...

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Strengthening governance and accountability, Reorienting the model of care, Creating an enabling environment

Strengthening prenatal and obstetric care in Belarus

Improving maternal and child health was established as a key government priority. Strong top-down support for change reinforced by legislation provided a guiding framework for transformations; Investigation into key challenges leading to a strong understanding of root causes ensured health reforms responded to needs; prenatal screening recommendations were developed and changes to resource distribution, provider training and incentives were implemented to promote uptake and adherence to new guidelines; financial incentives for patients helped encourage desired participation in prenatal care by women; service delivery reforms took time and adoption of a long-term vision was needed.

Sept. 6, 2016 Europe

Strengthening governance and accountability, Reorienting the model of care, Creating an enabling environment

Comprehensive health system reform to improve health in Azerbaijan

A health sector reform project was launched by the Government of Azerbaijan with the financial and technical support of the World Bank, leading to the adoption of a comprehensive National Master Plan for health in 2008; a strong understanding of the political context and environment proved important in determining an acceptable pace for proposed reforms; top-down leadership from the Ministry of Health ensured national ownership over internationally-supported reforms; strengthening the stewardship capacity of the Ministry was important; investment in human resources, including formalizing medical training and developing new medical specializations, was critical to driving sustainable change.