Primary care: an academic workshop as the answer

Academic workshop as a response to challenges

As of August 2022, we investigated whether an academic workshop could provide an answer to the formulated challenges. The answer seems positive, but a number of peripheral and process conditions need to be observed. For instance, there appears to be quite some variation in how academic workshops take shape in Flanders today. Which these are, you will soon be able to read in a report.

An initial preliminary process has been carried out with ELZ Scheldekracht. 

A jointly developed and implemented pathway of goal-oriented care is now behind us. This aimed at knowledge transfer, equality and empowerment of the participants involved. We are currently figuring out how to organise ourselves to achieve a sustainable academic workshop. Find out more about this at the event on 14 September 2023.

Challenges in primary care

That primary care is the future is evident from the national and international policies pursued. However, primary care and its actors face many challenges:

• demographic shifts such as ageing, silvering, greening;
• rise in chronic conditions; 
• rise in the incidence of multiple conditions in one person (multimorbidity);
• scientific and technological advances and their impact on healthcare affordability
• globalisation and socio-cultural developments;
• existential questions;
• socio-economic issues.

Realisations in primary care

This list is getting longer but a course has already been set. The following realisations address the needs within primary care:

• integrated care organisation;
• commit to increasing care literacy;
• supporting and strengthening self-efficacy and informal care;
• putting the person with care and support needs (PZON) at the centre;
• goal-oriented care; 
• supporting self-management; 
• interdisciplinary cooperation. 

The issue now is to help shape the handles or develop them where they are not yet there.  Is an academic primary care workshop (AWEL) the answer to the needs?

360-degree scan of current primary care situation

In a 360-degree scan, we mapped the current situation from September 2021 to July 2022. We surveyed external stakeholders, using a funnel method. We took both top-down and bottom-up signals from federal, Flemish actors to provincial, supra-local to local organisations and care providers. 

We asked them what their needs are in terms of education, research and policy and how these can be met. Numerous challenges came to light, both in terms of practice, but also in terms of education and lifelong learning. A tip of the hat:

• the organisation of the first line and first-line zones 
• target group of the first line (life course)
• attractiveness of primary care 
• challenges for integrated and comprehensive care
• cooperation in the first line
• current organisation and financing of 'care' stand in the way of solutions
• also focus on disease prevention and health promotion
• project fatigue and too few concrete results from ongoing projects
• education and lifelong learning 
• research and co-creation
• signal function

A member check of the results ran from July to August 2022 among respondents. The end-users, the person with a care and support need, were given their voice through the Academy of Primary Care's research agenda.

Future-proof research with impact, that's what we're all about!

Would you like to know more about our current offer? Arteveldehogeschool is co-founder of the Primary Care Academy and promoter of the research departments 'behavioural analysis', 'targeted care' and involved in 'interdisciplinary collaboration' and 'the education work package'.