Integrating healthcare: the Counties Manukau experience

In 1998, Counties Manukau District Health Board (CMDHB) was experiencing rapidly increasing demands on its secondary services. It was finding it increasingly difficult to meet the health needs of its relatively deprived population. There was widespread evidence of "systems failure", with poor coordination of primary and secondary services. A strategic plan was devised to meet identified priorities and this was subsequently implemented with extensive community involvement. A "disruptive change" model was utilised. Thirty separate projects were undertaken to improve coordination and integration of health services. Brief summaries of all projects are presented, and full evaluations were performed of major projects. Factors critical to project success were: dedicated and effective leadership; involvement of clinical staff; early engagement of the Maori and Pacific community; careful selection of stakeholders; reassurance for providers about privacy issues; close monitoring of project progress; realistic timeframes; and adequate initial funding. CMDHB believes that the critical factor to success in improving the performance of the health sector will be the ability of our key leaders in primary and secondary care, in both management and clinical roles, to adopt a systems view to problem analysis and solution building