Decentralisation, integration and accountability: perceptions of New Zealand's top health service managers

A scoping literature review of collaboration between primary care and public health

AIM

The purpose of this scoping literature review was to determine what is known about: 1) structures and processes required to build successful collaborations between primary care (PC) and public health (PH); 2) outcomes of such collaborations; and 3) markers of their success.

BACKGROUND

Collaboration between PC and PH is believed to enable more effective individual and population services than what might be achieved by either alone.

METHODS

The study followed established methods for a scoping literature review and was guided by a framework that identifies systemic, organizational and interactional determinants for collaboration. The review was restricted to articles published between 1988 and 2008. Published quantitative and qualitative primary studies, evaluation research, systematic and other types of reviews, as well as descriptive accounts without an explicit research design, were included if they addressed either the structures or processes to build collaboration or the outcomes or markers of such collaboration, and were published in English.

FINDINGS

The combined search strategy yielded 6125 articles of which 114 were included. Systemic-level factors influencing collaboration included: government involvement, policy and fit with local needs; funding and resource factors, power and control issues; and education and training. Lack of a common agenda; knowledge and resource limitations; leadership, management and accountability issues; geographic proximity of partners; and shared protocols, tools and information sharing were influential at the organizational level. Interpersonal factors included having a shared purpose; philosophy and beliefs; clear roles and positive relationships; and effective communication and decision-making strategies. Reported benefits of collaboration included: improved chronic disease management; communicable disease control; and maternal child health. More research is needed to explore the conditions and contexts in which collaboration between PC and PH makes most sense and potential gains outweigh the associated risks and costs.

Médecins omnipraticiens : pratiques et intégration des soins en santé mentale au Québec

Cet article examine le profil sociodémographique des médecins omnipraticiens (MO), leur rôle dans la prise en charge des troubles mentaux (transitoires/modérés, graves/persistants) dans les différents territoires (urbain, semi-urbain ou rural) du Québec, et si la pratique clinique et de collaboration de ces derniers est orientée vers une intégration des services de santé mentale. Cette étude transversale est basée sur 398 MO représentatifs de l’ensemble des MO du Québec qui répondaient à un questionnaire. L’étude révèle que les MO jouent un rôle central en santé mentale. Le profil sociodémographique et de pratique diffère selon les territoires. Les types de territoire et le degré de gravité du trouble mental influencent la propension des MO à intégrer les soins de santé mentale. Enfin, les MO pratiquent majoritairement en silo, mais soutiennent un renforcement de l’intégration des services de santé mentale. Les auteurs concluent que pour favoriser l’intégration des services de santé mentale, des incitatifs plus proactifs devraient être soutenus par les élites politiques et adaptés en fonction de la gravité des cas et des milieux. La pénurie des ressources, particulièrement frappante en milieu rural et l’insuffisance de mécanismes d’aide à la décision clinique, réduisent néanmoins les relations interprofessionnelles et limitent sérieusement l’intégration du dispositif de soins.

Quebec mental health services networks: models and implementation

PURPOSE

In the transformation of health care systems, the introduction of integrated service networks is considered to be one of the main solutions for enhancing efficiency. In the last few years, a wealth of literature has emerged on the topic of services integration. However, the question of how integrated service networks should be modelled to suit different implementation contexts has barely been touched. To fill that gap, this article presents four models for the organization of mental health integrated networks.

DATA SOURCES

The proposed models are drawn from three recently published studies on mental health integrated services in the province of Quebec (Canada) with the author as principal investigator.

DESCRIPTION

Following an explanation of the concept of integrated service network and a description of the Quebec context for mental health networks, the models, applicable in all settings: rural, urban or semi-urban, and metropolitan, and summarized in four figures, are presented.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

To apply the models successfully, the necessity of rallying all the actors of a system, from the strategic, tactical and operational levels, according to the type of integration involved: functional/administrative, clinical and physician-system is highlighted. The importance of formalizing activities among organizations and actors in a network and reinforcing the governing mechanisms at the local level is also underlined. Finally, a number of integration strategies and key conditions of success to operationalize integrated service networks are suggested.

On a hiding to nothing? Assessing the corporate governance of hospital and health services in New Zealand 1993-1998

In New Zealand the governance of public sector hospital and health services has changed significantly over the past decade. For most of the century hospitals had been funded by central government grants but run by locally elected boards. In 1989 a reforming Labour government restructured health services along managerialist lines, including changing governance structures so that some area health board members were government appointments, with the balance elected by the community. More market oriented reform under a new National government abolished this arrangement and introduced (1993) a corporate approach to the management of hospitals and related services. The hospitals were established as limited liability companies under the Companies Act. This was an explicitly corporate model and, although there was some modification of arrangements following the election of a more politically moderate centre-right coalition government in 1996, the corporate model was largely retained. Although significant changes occurred again after the election of a Labour government in 1999, the corporate governance experience in New Zealand health services is one from which lessons can, nevertheless, be learnt. This paper examines aspects of the performance and process of corporate governance arrangements for public sector health services in New Zealand, 1993-1998.

Towards general practice-led integrated healthcare in New Zealand

New Zealand's recent painful experience of health system reforms has shown that professional incentives are more powerful than market incentives, and that medical leadership, with accountability for both cost and quality, may be the key to success.

Lost in the market? A survey of senior public health service managers in New Zealand's 'reforming' health system

In 1993, New Zealand implemented radical health sector reform, separating purchaser from provider and creating a competitive market. This paper reports on a 1994 survey of senior managers' perceptions of how well public health services were adapting to this more commercial environment. An initial questionnaire to chief executive officers of Crown health enterprises, the main providers of public health, as well as secondary treatment services, was followed by a telephone survey of managers of public health services. Chief executives expressed generally positive views about the importance of public health, especially health promotion, within their organisations. Public health managers indicated a wide range of negative and positive views about the new system. They were concerned especially about service fragmentation, diminished information-sharing and decreased collaboration, especially with Maori and general practice providers. Questions were raised about the compatibility of competition with the need for collaboration in public health. The major issue was the inefficient, costly, conflicting and fragmented purchasing arrangements for public health. Managers wanted united systems and fewer purchasers. More positive views were expressed on an improved focus on outputs and clearer directions, and none wanted to return to the former era of an entirely separate system for public health services. The abolition of the Public Health Commission during 1995 should lead to increased integration of purchasing and policy making, but important questions remain about the place of public health services, especially in their links with primary care.

Decentralisation of general management within the New Zealand health system

The radical organisation changes implemented in the New Zealand health system in recent years are discussed and analysed in this study which is based upon a review of documents and interviews with general managers of area health boards. Service management, which involves the decentralisation of general management to programme or product groupings (medicine, child health etc) has been widely implemented in almost all boards completely replacing the traditional disciplinary hierarchies. It is also leading to a population-rather than an institutional-based system of management. General managers report positively on the achievements of service management including greater accountability and commitment of clinical staff, innovation and team building, improved performance and service quality, the integration of hospital and community-based care and a customer rather than an occupational orientation. There is an increasing trend towards the recognition of primary health care as a key service entity.