Sustainable interprofessional teamwork needs a team-friendly healthcare system: Experiences from a collaborative Dutch programme

Figures & data

Figure 1. Layers of interprofessional collaboration.

Table 1. The interprofessional network in the Dutch village Elsloo.

Issue	Details
Local setting	Elsloo is a village of 8,000 inhabitants, located within a larger municipality, in the south of the Netherlands. In the village, the number of elderly people, aged 75 or more, are supposed to double in the next 20 years up to approximately 1,300 people (18%). In 2013, a new health centre was built that included primary care facilities as well as a nursing home and care apartments. This was a momentum to realise a mutual approach in the care for the older people in the community. The professionals got funding from a programme of the Dutch government aimed at sustainable organisation of multidisciplinary care in the community. The project included: Development of an integrated care process, including structural team meetings Arrangement of an administratively, legally, and financially sustainable network organisation Regular input from patients’ expertise Providing opportunities for other professionals in prevention, care, and welfare, working in the community to join the network
	The organisational structure was aimed at the effectiveness and sustainability of the team. To foster the interprofessional bond, the professionals in the network not only meet each other to discuss patients’ care plans, but also collaborate in projects to improve their joint quality of care. Furthermore, they meet each other during informal network meetings.
Dutch context	Since 2015, municipalities have been responsible for all social support and assistance, while health insurance companies have become responsible for the purchasing policy of all medical and paramedical care and nursing care. The healthcare system reform is aimed at keeping people as self-supported as possible (Kroneman, 2015).

Kroneman, M. (2015). Health systems in transition (HiT) profile of Netherlands. The Health Systems and Policy Monitor. Retrieved from http://www.hspm.org/countries/netherlands25062012/livinghit.aspx?Section=6.8%20Long%20term%20care&Type=Section

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