Operational Excellence
February 22, 2007
On the Road
Danish group one of many foreign contingents to tour Kaiser Permanente with KP International
Oakland, Calif.—A group of 55 political leaders from Denmark will visit Kaiser Permanente facilities in California next month to learn more about preventive care and ways of reducing health care costs.
The study tour is being organized by Kaiser Permanente International, KP's consulting and educational arm for international visitors. KP International brings the knowledge and experience of the organization to governments, health care providers, health plans and other institutions around the world that are striving to improve their health care systems.
In January 2007, Denmark reorganized its government-funded health care system by consolidating service areas. One goal of this reform was to reduce expensive inpatient hospital stays, says Kjeld Erik Otte, MD, a nephrologist and department head for a Danish hospital in the municipality of Vejle.
"Kaiser Permanente has a lot of programs and ideas we can learn from," Otte says. "So we will go back to Denmark and try to implement its preventive health strategies."
The Danish group will be in California March 4-8. Those attending are political leaders responsible for some aspect of health care in their country. As a precursor to the study tour, Kaiser Permanente's Robert Crane, senior vice president of Research and Policy Development, spoke in January to a group of Danish political leaders in Vejle and health policy staff in Copenhagen.
Kaiser Permanente International educational programs are led by an extensive network of health care professionals. The educators also speak at conferences and to organizations worldwide.
A centerpiece of KP International's educational initiative is its Integrated Health Care Experience. The three-day learning event, held twice annually, combines workshops, lectures and site visits to provide health care leaders with an overview of the theory, strategy and delivery methods of a truly integrated health care system. Kaiser Permanente executive and physician leaders play an important role in the program by reviewing and discussing effective ways to deliver care for improved health outcomes.
Typical Integrated Health Care Experience topics include:
- The role of the primary care physician
- Using the Internet to communicate with patients
- Chronic disease management
- Clinical information systems
- Clinical practice guidelines
- Patients as partners
- Health education and prevention
- Physician leadership
- Innovation in health care
The most recent Integrated Health Care Experience event was held in the fall of 2006 and attracted 65 physician and administrative health care leaders from 14 countries. Two more programs are planned for 2007: April 16-18 and October 1-3.
As the largest non-profit integrated health care delivery system in the United States, KP brings a unique vision to the international health world. The organization's commitment to improving the health of its members and the communities it serves goes back more than 60 years. KP supports fundamental concepts through state-of-the-art technology and extensive resources, including 37 medical centers, 13,000 physicians, and 156,000 employees in nine states and the District of Columbia.
In addition to its regularly scheduled educational programs, KP International also develops customized educational initiatives designed to meet the specific needs of organizations, both in the United States and overseas.
For more information on the Integrated Health Care Experience or Kaiser Permanente International: go to KP International's website, or contact Molly Porter, training manager for KP International.
