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COMMUNITY CASE STUDY article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health Policy
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1455810

Primary Care Academy: lessons learned from a large scale innovative primary care project

Provisionally accepted
Manon Steurs Manon Steurs 1Emily Verté Emily Verté 1Hans De Loof Hans De Loof 2Isabel Weemaes Isabel Weemaes 3Roy Remmen Roy Remmen 4*Sibyl Anthierens Sibyl Anthierens 4Patricia De Vriendt Patricia De Vriendt 5,6,7
  • 1 Department of Family Medicine and Chronic Care, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
  • 2 Laboratory of Physiopharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical, Biomedical and Veterinary Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
  • 3 Other, Brussels, Belgium
  • 4 Department Family Medicine and Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
  • 5 Frailty in Ageing research group, Department Gerontology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Jette, Belgium
  • 6 Mental Health and Wellbeing Research Group, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Jette, Belgium
  • 7 Independent researcher, Ghent, Belgium

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction and context: The social and healthcare system faces numerous challenges, with primary care playing a key role in achieving universal and equitable health coverage. However, the primary care field often struggles with limited research capacity, activity, and funding. The Primary Care Academy: To address these gaps, the Primary Care Academy (PCA) - a large-scale, innovative, interdisciplinary research and networking organisation, encompassing then organisation in the primary care field, was established and funded in 2019 by the Fund Dr Daniel De Coninck, a charity foundation, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation, attempted to fil this gap. Objectives: The aim of this study was identifying lessons learned on the implementation and achievements of a large-scale, innovative research and network organisation, specifically the PCA. Method: This study evaluates the PCA's development process, focusing on its key achievements and critical elements by using a mixed-method data collection approach. After five years of rigorous collaboration, several lessons can be drawn regarding accomplishments and process flow, particularly in terms of a shared and clear vision, governance, leadership, and organizational culture. Discussion and conclusion: These lessons can inform future adaptations in the continuation of the PCA and serve as a guide for other caritative large-scale innovative initiatives.

    Keywords: large-scale innovative primary care network, Lessons learned, primary healthcare, achievements4, development and implementation proces5

    Received: 27 Jun 2024; Accepted: 26 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Steurs, Verté, De Loof, Weemaes, Remmen, Anthierens and De Vriendt. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Roy Remmen, Department Family Medicine and Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.