TICC aimed to create systemic change in health & social care, providing services better suited to an ageing population addressing holistic needs. It presented a methodology to overcome blocking points in transferring socially innovative service models from one region to another. This was tested via the implementation of the Buurtzorg integrated care at home into new geographic & cultural contexts. 

The Buurtzorg model consists of self-managing teams of 12 staff. They work at the neighbourhood level, handling every aspect of care & business, significantly reducing back office, IT & coaching costs. The model also provides better outcomes for people at lower cost and with fewer unplanned hospital admissions.

The model was implemented in Belgium, France and in the United Kingdom following trainings organised by the Dutch Buurtzorg partners.  

TICC sought to enable other health/social care organisations to implement new ideas; increase staff productivity/recruitment/retention/patient satisfaction and decrease costs/emergency admissions and staff absence. It also aimed to postpone the moment when residential/end of life care was needed. 

The main outputs were: 
● The Buurtzorg community homecare model implemented in 3 new countries.
● Changes to existing patient data gathering systems following the Omaha logic for better communication between nurses/care workers/patients.
● 2 evaluation reports determining whether the Buurtzorg homecare model has had the anticipated success in FR, BE and UK.
● A 2 Seas specific health & social care system process improvement mapping blueprint (for implementing change)

Check the “Outputs” section below to download related material and see “Main Achievements” section for further information about the achieved results.

The Dutch organisation Buurtzorg had developed a radical & highly successful model for providing home care nursing which has generated much interest in the 2 Seas area. Front-line care providers who were otherwise blocked by constraints within existing state health structures were to duplicate the model elsewhere in Europe. 

TICC project partners brought expertise to identify barriers blocking innovation transfer and designed a methodology to ensure successful innovative practices in health & social care could be easily implemented across borders. 

The 2 Seas Programme gave the opportunity for a regional European test before a wider roll-out. The health & care systems in the 4 countries are all very different & cover the majority of models used across Europe. As such, the project collaboration could more easily ensure transferability across the whole EU. By working in partnership across 4 countries, the TICC implementation highlighted barriers individual partners could not encounter in isolation. 

Cross border cooperation provided the project with the opportunity to understand other countries' demographic challenges, and to deepen knowledge based on those who initiated the Buurtzorg approach, and those already using it. An understanding of common barriers across Europe – such as workforce, politics, administration, etc - helped with the common aim and commitment to enable new ways of working, holistic care and self-managed teams with a focus on staff and service user autonomy. Sharing the experience of change whilst continuing to provide care/respond during the pandemic was also an unexpected valuable element.