Alaskan health care redesign experts hold conference in Napier

23 Oct 2018, 14:26

Health practitioners as well as health and social service providers from throughout New Zealand are in Hawke’s Bay this week to learn from the founders of a world-leading non-profit Alaskan health care model that has made an extraordinary difference to the health and wellbeing of the Alaskan communities it serves.

Southcentral Foundation is an Alaskan Native-owned, non-profit health care organisation. Managing more than 80 health care programs and services, the Foundation serves more than 65,000 Alaska Native and American Indian people in Anchorage, the Mat-Su Borough and 55 rural villages in the Anchorage Service Unit.

Hawke’s Bay District Health Board, Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated and the wider Hawke’s Bay health system warmly welcomed Southcentral Foundation to host the conference at Napier’s Conference Centre (23 and 24 October). The Foundation will share its successful health care redesign model, the Nuka System of Care (Nuka), which is based on relationships, a customer-owned approach to transforming health care, improving outcomes and reducing cost.

The award-winning system has been providing value-based care for more than 30 years to Alaskan communities, with an emphasis on quality, population health outcomes and whole person care.

Southcentral Foundation say using its tools and methodologies unique to Nuka, conference participants will walk away inspired by the future of health care and equipped with answers to issues facing their organisations.

The two day conference features detailed insights from more than 50 subject matter experts on topics such as data and information management, behavioural health integration, leadership best practices, strategic planning, and more.

More than 350 conference delegates from throughout New Zealand are in attendance.  The visit is well timed for the Hawke’s Bay health sector given the significant work being undertaken as part of the region’s health care redesign planning through the draft Clinical Services Plan (CSP).