Optimizing top specialized burn care in the Netherlands

Project Details

Description

The mission of our consortium, consisting of all three Dutch Burn Centers, is to achieve the best possible quality of life, autonomy and reintegration into daily life for every burn patient. We aim to reach this by optimal person-centered care matching a patient’s preferences and goals through providing the right care, at the right time, in the right place for the right price. In this model, the patient is an equal partner in creating a personalized approach to their care at three distinct stages – acute burn care, skin constructs and aftercare. Furthermore, this approach aligns with the principles of value-based health care (VBHC), shared decision making (SDM) and Triple Aim: better care, better health and better value for every patient.
This TZO project aims to develop a sustainable systematic VBHC framework that shapes the evaluation of our specialized care and aligns with our current and future care and research priorities. We will integrate and strengthen insights from our burn care and research while improving training for professionals and students from relevant disciplines.
Our consortium has a solid track record in registry-based research, national infrastructure, an international network, recognition as a VBHC leader in burn care and a shared commitment to knowledge translation and exchange. In fact, the Netherlands is one of only two jurisdictions that has a standardized and validated outcomes registry for burn care, and as such, we are uniquely positioned to exponentially improve care, outcomes and value.
Our VBHC framework builds our existing data registries on patient and injury characteristics and clinical processes (Dutch Burn Repository R3) and patient-reported outcomes (Burn Centre Outcomes Registry the Netherlands), with outcomes such as quality of life and scar quality assessed over time.
We have selected three pivotal areas of burn care: the timing of surgery of intermediate depth burns, the added value of tissue-engineered skin constructs, and aftercare. These areas have been studied, however there is no evidence-informed consensus on best practice. As such, this project has an unprecedented opportunity to inform standards of burn care. By choosing a VBHC framework to address this knowledge and practice gap, we are prioritizing the patient's perspective and values. Three projects will be implemented jointly, with each Burn Centre leading one project:
• In Subproject 1 (lead: Maasstad Hospital, Rotterdam) we will investigate patient-relevant outcomes of surgery timing on intermediate depth burn wounds and develop a decision aid to support SDM and improve acute burn care.
• In Subproject 2 (lead: Red Cross Hospital, Beverwijk) we will investigate the role of tissue-engineered skin constructs for improving patient-relevant outcomes of deep (full thickness) burns and develop a decision aid to support SDM and improve burn care.
• In Subproject 3 (lead: Martini Hospital, Groningen) we will investigate aftercare for burns and develop, implement and study the effectiveness of a blended approach for personalized aftercare programs, with a focus on self-management.
All Subprojects use the same approach based on six work packages (WP) to create a structured implementation of our VBHC framework:
• In WP1, we define a core set of indicators (e.g. time to wound closure), outcomes (e.g. hospital stay; quality of life) and costs components (e.g. care and productivity costs) to use in the VBHC framework, determined with patients.
• In WP2, we update our existing registries based on the core set (WP1) and link them to develop a standardized VBHC framework including analysis models. A dashboard will be developed where core set outcomes and analysis models are accessible for researchers and healthcare providers.
• In WP3, the typical care of our three Burn Centers will be evaluated on each Subproject and used to inform patient care.
• In WP4, outcomes will be used to develop innovative tools to enhance SDM.
• In WP5, new tools will be tested and implemented to further improve patient-centered burn care.
• In WP6, patient-centered care will be anchored in our treatment, research and education priorities and we will disseminate knowledge gained, including our expertise, new tools, insights on VBHC and SDM processes and lessons learned through a knowledge exchange dissemination plan.
This project will address the most urgent questions in burn care, result in improved evidence to inform best practice and strengthen a sustainable VBHC approach. It is an unparalleled opportunity to enhance the leading burn care approach and further secure the consortiums’ global ranking in the integration of burn care, research and education. Most importantly, the sustainable VBHC framework will support ongoing innovation and improvements as we strive to achieve our mission to achieve the best possible quality of life, autonomy and reintegration into daily life for every burn patient.
StatusActive
Effective start/end date21/12/2021 → …