POSITIVE CORNER #29: Globally Learning Health Systems
National health systems worldwide face particular challenges: managing chronic diseases, caring for aging societies, responding to pandemics and remaining sustainable, fair and affordable.
Given the wealth of knowledge already available globally, it would be absurd not to process, share and utilize it to improve healthcare systems and the well-being of people worldwide. There's no need to reinvent the wheel everywhere and in the worst-case scenario, to fall far short of current best practices. The key is to make best practices accessible across borders and to adapt them intelligently to the local context.
The Partnership for Health System Sustainability & Resilience ( PHSSR ) organizes precisely this kind of global learning: research teams examine health systems using a common framework; countries become comparable, findings are shared publicly and translated into policy action pathways. In this way, many national experiences are transformed into shared knowledge for better health systems.
For example, under the leadership of the PHSSR, eight countries from Europe and Asia have pooled their expertise in the early prevention and treatment of so-called non-communicable diseases. The proper management of conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes is a key challenge for almost all healthcare systems. International cooperation in this area is leading to tangible solutions:
"Performance differences within and between countries show that improvement is feasible with existing knowledge and resources. Systems that shift investment and emphasis toward prevention, risk-stratified detection, shorter diagnostic pathways, and integrated chronic care can bend the trajectory of disease burden despite ageing populations. Those that delay will entrench inequity and escalate future costs. [...] The path forward demands political courage, sustained commitment, and recognition that acting early is not only cost-effective but morally imperative."
To date, PHSSR has already established an international learning platform with research from over 30 countries. Country and region analyses highlight diverse experiences and help to avoid inventing effective approaches in isolation, but rather to learn from one another in a context-sensitive way. The country studies are conducted by international and national partners to ensure that global knowledge is not simply copied, but adapted to local needs.
At the center of the ω-dimension of leadership stands the question:
How can we use the knowledge available to humanity effectively and meaningfully?
When human well-being, dignity, and participation are the benchmark, knowledge is not hoarded. Good ideas are allowed to circulate.
This is the antithesis of national isolationism or the "not invented here" syndrome. Not everything needs to be reinvented. Knowledge and resources can be better utilized when we openly share experiences, critically examine them, and develop them further together – for the benefit of all people.
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