Buykx, P., Humphreys, J.S., Tham, R. et al. (4 more authors) (2012) How do small rural primary health care services sustain themselves in a constantly changing health system environment? BMC Health Services Research, 12. 81. ISSN 1472-6963
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The ability to sustain comprehensive primary health care (PHC) services in the face of change is crucial to the health of rural communities. This paper illustrates how one service has proactively managed change to remain sustainable.
METHODS: A 6-year longitudinal evaluation of the Elmore Primary Health Service (EPHS) located in rural Victoria, Australia, is currently underway, examining the performance, quality and sustainability of the service. Threats to, and enablers of, sustainability have been identified from evaluation data (audit of service indicators, community surveys, key stakeholder interviews and focus groups) and our own observations. These are mapped against an overarching framework of service sustainability requirements: workforce organisation and supply; funding; governance, management and leadership; service linkages; and infrastructure.
RESULTS: Four years into the evaluation, the evidence indicates EPHS has responded effectively to external and internal changes to ensure viability. The specific steps taken by the service to address risks and capitalise on opportunities are identified.
CONCLUSIONS: This evaluation highlights lessons for health service providers, policymakers, consumers and researchers about the importance of ongoing monitoring of sentinel service indicators; being attentive to changes that have an impact on sustainability; maintaining community involvement; and succession planning.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2012 Buykx et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Capacity Building; Community-Institutional Relations; Comprehensive Health Care; Delivery of Health Care, Integrated; Efficiency, Organizational; Humans; Leadership; Longitudinal Studies; Models, Organizational; Narration; National Health Programs; Organizational Innovation; Organizational Objectives; Primary Health Care; Quality Assurance, Health Care; Rural Health Services; Victoria |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Health and Related Research (Sheffield) > ScHARR - Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 23 Feb 2016 09:59 |
Last Modified: | 23 Feb 2016 09:59 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1472-6963-12-81 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | BioMed Central |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1186/1472-6963-12-81 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:95506 |