Co-Designing a Collaborative Chronic Care Network (C3N) for Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Development of Methods.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Systems Engineering
• Patient-Centered Care
• Translational Research

Background:

• Current healthcare systems struggle to achieve optimal outcomes, necessitating transformative change beyond incremental improvements.
• Learning health systems (LHSs) offer a promising model for accelerating outcomes, enhancing care delivery, and advancing clinical research.
• Few established LHSs exist, highlighting a need for practical frameworks to develop them.

Purpose of the Study:

• To detail the co-design methods employed with diverse stakeholders to translate the concept of a collaborative chronic care network (C3N) into actionable steps.
• To establish a blueprint for a networked LHS focused on collaborative chronic care.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a modified idealized design process within the ImproveCareNow network, focusing on pediatric inflammatory bowel disease.
• Engaged a wide range of stakeholders, including patients, families, clinicians, researchers, social scientists, technologists, and designers.
• Facilitated collaborative design sessions to develop the C3N framework.

Main Results:

• Developed a comprehensive concept design for the ImproveCareNow C3N.
• Created a logic model to guide the implementation of the C3N.
• Identified 13 potential innovations to enhance awareness, agency, information sharing, and collaboration within the C3N, suitable for collective testing.

Conclusions:

• Demonstrated a viable co-design methodology for creating a networked LHS.
• The developed C3N design has the potential to significantly transform chronic care systems.
• The approach facilitates the transition of chronic care into a learning health system model.