gms | German Medical Science

Background: The significance of effective interprofessional teamwork to improve the quality of care has been widely recognised. In a Dutch village, healthcare professionals in primary care set up a network aimed at sustainable interprofessional teamwork in elderly care. In organising their collaborative practice, most of the complicating factors related to the connection between the team and external partners.

Question: Which issues were experienced in the interaction between the interprofessional care team and external partners for developing sustainable interprofessional teamwork in primary care?

Methods: The examination is based on a business case analysis, conversations of the interprofessional care team with the health insurance company and civil servants from the municipality, and on the evaluation report of the network development project.

Results: Healthcare teams focus on the perceived needs in local communities whilst health insurance companies and municipalities are more likely to benefit from innovation at a broader scale. Shared benefits of effective interprofessional teamwork in local communities are not clear. Organisational structures of the health insurance appeared to be not supportive for care arrangements that go beyond traditional boundaries.

Discussion: To support the development of interprofessional teams, the shared aim to provide quality of care in an efficient and effective way need further recognition. The challenge for healthcare teams is to learn to speak the language of external partners. Fundamental changes are needed in the organisation of health insurance companies to facilitate interprofessional care. Municipalities should work on their vision of the needs and benefits of a fruitful collaboration with interprofessional healthcare teams.