The Technical Support Instrument can support Member States for the successful design and implementation of resilience-enhancing reforms, and in particular in the context of the recent crises.

The proposed 2023 Flagship technical support projects have been selected on the basis that they are largely needed across Member States and are linked to top EU priorities the Member States are in the process of implementing. As such, they aim at supporting Member States in achieving resilience and growth enhancing reforms.

Towards person-centred integrated care

his Flagship Technical Support Project aims at helping Member States, notably the ministries of health and the ministries of social affairs to design and implement structural reforms in the areas of health, social care and long-term care. It will help strengthen the coordination between these sectors and the integration of the different levels of care provision, by putting the person at the centre of services to ensure better access and better quality of care at every stage of life.

The proposed flagship project targets areas that are relevant for regional/local administrations: health, social care and long-term care.

IMPACT OF THE FLAGSHIP

• Reinforced ability of Member States to develop high-level strategies and operational plans for the provision of integrated care
• Strengthened managerial and operational capacity to prepare and implement integrated care reforms at national and regional/local level
• Improved ability to assess the barriers and drivers for integrated care development at national and regional/local level
• Increased ability to understand the key elements in the funding and design of integrated services in different contexts
• Improved gender equality
• Increased cohesion between regions

OBJECTIVES

• Support national and regional/local administrations in investigating, designing and implementing strategies for integrating health, social care and long-term care
• Create a system in which all care providers- health specialists, nurses, social workers, informal carers, etc. - act in a coordinated manner for the benefit of people
• Improve people’s access to and the quality of health, social and long-term care
• Support the implementation of EU priorities on health and social care, including the upcoming European Care Strategy and proposal for a Council recommendation on long-term care

MEASURES OF TECHNICAL SUPPORT PROVIDED

This flagship project identifies four work packages, each with their own set of deliverables that will be tailored to each Member State. Member States can request support for one or more work packages.

Map existing information systems, delivery models and databases on the provision of health, social and long-term care services

• Assessing care services, gaps and barriers to an effective delivery of care
• Evaluation of primary care, hospital care, long-term care and mental care services from various perspectives: legislation, governance, resources, funding, capacity or e-tools
• Identification of barriers to the effective organisation and delivery of care, including barriers to the provision of integrated care

Develop a strategy and a roadmap for achieving integrated care

• Prepare and create new roles, processes and working practices that integrate health, social and long-term care services, including by building on existing instruments (i.e. World Health Organisation Country assessment framework for integrated delivery of long-term care)
• Create new systems to support information sharing & cooperation across care teams
• Prepare and deploy integrated care solutions at national or regional/local level
• Support the vertical integration of care provision, i.e. primary care and hospital care
• Support the horizontal integration of care provision, i.e. health and social care, by putting the person at the centre of the system and by ensuring gender equality

Exchange of good practices with other Member States and stakeholder consultations

Support the digitalisation of care

• Build and deploy digital solution in a way to ensure that the digitalisation of health, social and long-term care relies on digital solutions in an interoperable manner

The Application form as well as more details are available here and here.