To succeed in an increasingly complex and costly healthcare system, hospitals and health systems need to continuously learn and apply new knowledge to challenges, according to a report by the Institute of Medicine Committee on the Learning Health Care System in America.
One of the 10 core strategies of becoming a continuously learning healthcare system is broad leadership — expanding leadership's commitment to the goals of a continuously learning system.
The IOM shared four strategies leaders can use to promote continuous learning:
1. Healthcare delivery organizations should develop organizational cultures that support and encourage continuous improvement, the use of best practices, transparency, open communication, staff empowerment, coordination, teamwork and mutual respect and align rewards accordingly.
2. Leaders of these organizations should define, disseminate, support and commit to a vision of continuous improvement; focus attention, training and resources on continuous learning; and build an operational model that incentivizes continuous improvement and ensures its sustainability.
3. Governing boards of healthcare delivery organizations should support and actively participate in fostering a culture of continuous improvement, request continuous feedback on the progress being made toward the adoption of such a culture and align leadership incentive structures accordingly.
4. Clinical professional specialty societies, health professional education programs, health professions specialty boards, licensing boards and accreditation organizations should incorporate basic concepts and specialized applications of continuous learning and improvement into health professions education; continuing education; and licensing, certification and accreditation requirements.
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One of the 10 core strategies of becoming a continuously learning healthcare system is broad leadership — expanding leadership's commitment to the goals of a continuously learning system.
The IOM shared four strategies leaders can use to promote continuous learning:
1. Healthcare delivery organizations should develop organizational cultures that support and encourage continuous improvement, the use of best practices, transparency, open communication, staff empowerment, coordination, teamwork and mutual respect and align rewards accordingly.
2. Leaders of these organizations should define, disseminate, support and commit to a vision of continuous improvement; focus attention, training and resources on continuous learning; and build an operational model that incentivizes continuous improvement and ensures its sustainability.
3. Governing boards of healthcare delivery organizations should support and actively participate in fostering a culture of continuous improvement, request continuous feedback on the progress being made toward the adoption of such a culture and align leadership incentive structures accordingly.
4. Clinical professional specialty societies, health professional education programs, health professions specialty boards, licensing boards and accreditation organizations should incorporate basic concepts and specialized applications of continuous learning and improvement into health professions education; continuing education; and licensing, certification and accreditation requirements.
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IOM: 10 Recommendations to Create a Continuously Learning Healthcare System7 Characteristics of Continuously Learning Healthcare Systems
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