Motivation
European countries face similar challenges in sustaining an effective health care system, like sociodemographic changes (older population, migration), and skilled labor shortage.
Changes or deficiencies in health care during office hours often result in patients seeking care out of hours (OOH). These deficiencies can be e.g., lack of accessibility and timely availability of the own GP, difficulties to navigate the more and more complex system due to a lower health literacy or digital literacy. For these patients, the acute care, with direct access, is considered a safety net.
Aims and scope
In order to address these issues, researchers from several European countries established a new network in 2010: EurOOHnet, the European research network for OOH primary health care. The network aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of organizational models across Europe and focuses on future innovations and barriers to change. Thus, the three main aims of the network are.
- Research ForumA forum to discuss research on OOH care, and to disseminate results of recent studies.
- Collaborative ResearchCollaborative research in OOH primary health care: share and conduct international research (using uniform protocols), discuss results, and collaborate on specific research themes.
- Knowledge ExchangeSharing knowledge and experiences about different organizational models for OOH care across Europe by visiting member countries to exchange information and experiences.
Members
- Belgium
- Croatia
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Serbia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
Board
The following board members represent leading institutions across Europe. They bring together expertise in primary care, health services research, emergency care, and healthcare communication to support and strengthen the network’s mission.
Publications
2014, European Journal of General Practice
On a European collaboration to identify organizational models, potential shortcomings and improvement options in out-of-...
Leutgeb R, Walker N, Remmen R, Klemenc-Ketis Z, Szecsenyi J, Laux G
2014, European Journal of General Practice
EurOOHnet - the European research network for out-of-hours primary health care
Huibers L, Philips H, Giesen P, Remmen R, Christensen MB, Bondevik GT
Projects
Cross-border comparison of trends in OOH GP care: similarities and differences between the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and Norway
Due to an aging population, staff shortages and a 24/7 mindset among patients, the pressure on GPs and triagist OOH is continuously rising. This is also true for Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands, and Norway, despite differences in the organisation of OOH care. What the four countries do have in common is that they have registry data available for research, either from claims data or from electronic patient records of OOH services. We will use this data to repeat, and improve on, the study of Huibers et al from 2014, by comparing the consumption of OOH care in the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and Norway. We will establish the 10-year trend and additionally provide more in-depth comparison on the peak-times, age groups and type of consultation in 2023. Furthermore, we will reflect on these results from the perspective of differences in the organization of OOH care and the differences in the country demographics, to enable learning between countries.