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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July 10, 2017 Europe

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

The House of Care: Re-imagining primary care in Scotland

“House of Care” is a sequence of several interrelated, synergistic strategies, at the core of which is a patient-led care programme design; patients design their own care plan in consultation with practice nurses; patients report having more agency. Some patients report an improvement in biomedical markers, as well as overall wellbeing; Staff morale appears to have increased.

Oct. 11, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Strengthening governance and accountability, Reorienting the model of care

Strengthening community-based mental health services in Cyprus

New political commitments to mental health reform led the government to pass the Mental Health Act in 1997 to promote community-based mental health care; a wide variety of community-based mental health services have been made available, with emphasis on services for prevention, early treatment, rehabilitation and home care; advocacy from the health workforce motivated reforms and helped define the vision for care transformations; strategic timing was an important contributing factor in achieving political support for mental health reform; partnerships with NGOs and volunteer organizations helped expand the continuum of mental health care.

Oct. 4, 2016 Europe

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

Integrating nutrition programmes in primary care in Kyrgyzstan

A programme to distribute micronutrient sprinkles, locally known as “Gulazyk”, was introduced with donor support. Following successful piloting of the programme, activities were scaled up nationally in 2011; aligning with existing infrastructure and services helped support and stabilize reforms implemented under the initiative; building trust between primary care providers and patients was essential for ensuring uptake of micronutrient supplementation; community health volunteers aided trust building; developing a consistent message across all providers, even those not directly involved with the initiative, safeguarded changes against being undermined at different care levels; encouraging participation of mothers and community members proved valuable in overcoming ...

Oct. 4, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Coordinating services within and across sectors

Introducing community-based lifestyle clinics to improve population health in Malta

Lifestyle Clinics offering healthy-living support were introduced across Malta to expand availability of health promotion and disease prevention services; a motivated, multidisciplinary group of primary care professionals led the initiative through collaborative teamwork; the initiative capitalized on recent government policies supporting chronic disease prevention and a newly-established postgraduate community nursing programme; an initial information campaign helped raise awareness and gain public acceptance for new services; patients responded well to being offered a more active role in their health; further, patients play a key advocacy role in expanding the initiative.

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

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

Outpatient rehabilitation services for working-age patients with brain injuries in Bern, Switzerland

An outpatient rehabilitation centre specifically adapted to the needs of working-age patients recovering from brain injuries was opened in Bern; Direct clinical experience of the multi-professional leadership team helped draw awareness to service delivery gaps and aided the design of practical services to address observed needs; co-location of providers within the rehabilitation centre increased service coordination and improved access for patients, while external networking between providers helped generate referrals; gradual expansion of the initiative allowed time for sufficient resources to be collected and necessary partnerships to be established, ensuring steady and sustainable growth.

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

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

Pioneering integrated organizational models for improving elderly people’s care in Ängelholm, Sweden

A new integrated care organization (Hälsostaden) was established to merge primary and hospital care with elderly and social care. Hälsostaden is jointly managed by its regional and municipal government and employs 600 professionals across health and social sectors; early investments in stakeholder relationships and trust building were essential for securing the future of the initiative and developing a foundation based on teamwork; finding the uniting objective of improving care for elderly people enabled stakeholders to move forward with planning; contextualizing the initiative within emerging political priorities helped generate political support and secure the necessary legal frameworks; identifying individual ...

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

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

Introducing palliative care in Serbia

The Ministry of Health established the Palliative Care Task Force and adopted the National Strategy for Palliative Care to guide the development of palliative care across Serbia; partnerships with international organizations, local NGOs and supportive government actors helped secure buy-in at the national level; developing a legislative and political base was essential for creating a foundation on which to build the initiative; securing EU funding provided additional resources to support activities; incorporating a new palliative care philosophy within professional culture required extensive training, communication, advocacy and time; formalizing educational opportunities through university partnerships helped to ensure sustainability.

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

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

Integrating occupational therapy into cancer care in the Netherlands

Reade – an organization specializing in rehabilitative care – introduced a package of services specifically tailored to the needs of cancer patients and cancer survivors; support from Reade’s management in developing protocols and negotiating with national-level actors was essential for the implementation of the initiative; providers within Reade were brought together to apply their skills to treating the complex needs of cancer patients and survivors. Providers work in multidisciplinary teams to enable the delivery of more comprehensive care; initiative leaders built strong working relationships with external providers. This helped bring other providers on board with Reade’s new care concept and ...

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

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

Strengthening cancer screening in Montenegro

In 2008, the Government of Montenegro released the National Cancer Control Plan. Responding to recommendations proposed by the Plan, the Institute of Public Health developed a comprehensive cancer screening programme for colorectal cancer. Following successful piloting, the colorectal cancer screening programme is now being expanded to cover other priority cancers; partnerships with stakeholders outside of the health sector provided access to technologies and tools for engaging the public. Text messaging was the main tool used for outreach; moving from a reactive to a proactive approach was important for reaching and engaging the target population and increasing uptake of screenings; a ...

Sept. 7, 2016 Europe

Engaging and empowering people and communities, Strengthening governance and accountability, Coordinating services within and across sectors

Establishing a Gerontology Coordination Centre to improve care for the elderly in Monaco

The Ministry of Health and Social Affairs opened the Gerontology Coordination Centre as a dedicated resource to support and provide services to elderly people aged 60 years and over; Monaco's small geographic and population size lent itself to a centralized approach. The initiative created a hub for the coordination of multiple aspects of health and social care for the elderly; services offered by the Centre are holistic, integrated, tailored to individual needs and place strong emphasis on supporting patients’ independence. Comprehensive geriatric assessments evaluating physical, mental and social needs are now available to all people aged 60 years and ...