All Hands on Deck. Transforming the Health System Requires Innovation, Through Individual- and Diffusion Efforts; Comment on “Employee-Driven Innovation in Health Organizations: Insights From a Scoping Review”

Document Type : Commentary

Author

1 Health Technology and Services Research, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands

2 Psycho Oncology and Epidemiology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Abstract

Employee Driven Innovation (EDI) is essential in transforming hospitals and other providers, but the challenge is also to have impact on health systems as a whole. Usually a mix from top down measures and bottom up initiatives leads to an innovative culture. An important aspect is the innate difference between types of providers related to initiating, facilitating and rewarding innovation. Second the rewarding system within organisations but also in science and scientific journals. Especially nursing and other non-medical professions can be emancipated in this regard. Further there is a growing interdependence with digitalisation in all its forms and awareness of the related team effort is needed to actually realise innovative projects within a standing organisation. Lastly change the paradigm related to the spread of innovations from “not invented here” to “proudly copied from”, create trust and organize collaboration between providers and spend sufficient attention to credible evidence on the effectiveness.

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