Today, Buurtzorg Britain & Ireland has been very pleased to welcome Buurtzorg Founder and CEO Jos de Blok to the UK.
Speaking to an audience of health and social care leaders that included Board Members, Directors and Commissioners, Jos shared the story of how he and his team have revolutionised community care in the Netherlands and sparked an international interest in the concept of the self-managed teams that are at the heart of Buurtzorg. In particular, he addressed the business case behind the model, what it takes for an organisation and its leaders to adopt it successfully and the challenges of leading organisations built on the principles of self-management.
The concept of Buurtzorg self-managed teams is based on trust in the care professional and creating a structure that enables them to deliver the best possible care. To succeed, leadership must be fully on board with this radical model transforming from traditional ‘command and control’ to ‘alternative means of control’; making this shift can be challenging in a UK context with well-established structures and bureaucracies. The key theme of how quality and control are ensured in a self-managed model were also explored along with how Buurtzorg does not advocate care at any price but at making the financial envelope work while improving care.
Buurtzorg Britain & Ireland are working with NHS, local authority and third sector leaders across the UK to develop ways of working in self-managed teams inspired by Buurtzorg to deliver greater integration in health and social care.
Jos’ visit forms part of the on-going programme of work under the Transforming Integrated Care in the Community (TICC) project.
TICC is a cross-border partnership involving 14 organisations from the UK, France, the Netherlands and Belgium, approved and funded by the EU Interreg 2 Seas Programme 2014-2020 (co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund) which has supported the project over four years.
Lessons learnt in the TICC programme aim to benefit the entire health and care system in the UK, France and Belgium.
As part of the same stop over, Jos will also address an audience of social work leaders in an event organised by Frontline.