ID-5184 Wonca Abstracts supplement A-K 13-10-23 - Flipbook - Page 212
WONCA 2023 Supplement 1: WONCA 2023 abstracts (A–K)
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Learning health systems and the future of general practice
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Dr Darran Foo1, Louise Ellis2, Georgia Fisher2, Dr Janani Mahadeva1
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MQ Health General Practice, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University,
Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences,
Macquarie University
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A Learning Health System (LHS) is a healthcare system where science, informatics, incentives
and culture align to facilitate continuous improvement and innovation. It is a system that not only
consistently delivers reliable performance, but also systematically and seamlessly improves with
each care experience – a system with an intrinsic ability to learn. We currently face a global primary
care crisis that is fuelled by a perfect storm: an ageing GP workforce, declining interest in general
practice as a career and widespread burnout exacerbated by the pandemic. To avert this crisis, we
propose the application of an LHS framework to cultivate and sustain high-performing, sustainable
general practice.
While LHSs can exist at all levels of the primary care system, arguably the most critical is the micro
level within individual practices; this is where the ‘rubber hits the road’ and actual work is carried
out. If we can successfully implement the LHS framework at this level, we will facilitate GP-led,
multistakeholder teams to operate at their full capacity and realise the true value of team-based care.
In this forum, we will discuss the concept of LHSs, strategies to implement them at the practice level
and real-world examples of how various practices are already operating across several dimensions of
an LHS.
Health systems currently rely on rigid, linear diagnostic and treatment algorithms to improve quality
and safety, but at a detriment to sustainability and efficiency; they have driven exponential increases in
cost and resource requirements with little improvement in outcomes. In the diverse and complex world
of primary care, LHSs will allow for appropriate triage and efficient allocation of finite resources. The
LHS framework has the potential to significantly contribute to building sustainable and high-performing
primary care systems for the future.
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