Cross-National Health Care Policy and Leadership
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There is a need for health managers of the future to see how and why health care systems on each side of the Atlantic are structured and managed differently. Examining the diversity of the EU and US health care systems provides fertile ground for innovating the health care systems in each continent and for improving quality of care.
Valuable opportunities for health care managers of the future
A total of 27 students were exchanged during the course of this project. The project enabled students from the US universities to gain a unique insight into the health care systems of a number of European countries (Greece, Spain and Germany) and students from the EU to do the same in the US. In the EU, the students from the US followed courses and were placed in various hospitals throughout these countries during the summer semester. EU students, similarly, followed curricula at US universities during the autumn semester and had placements as well.
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Students gained considerably as a result of the -international experience, both on the EU and US side. The institutes themselves (re)affirmed their international position while the students on both sides were inspired to introduce innovations within their health care systems.
Creating a cohort of innovation-focused professionals
The project impacted significantly on students. They invariably learned to value another way of thinking and living both in a personal/cultural sense as well as in a professional sense. For their part, the institutes involved gained and (re)established their international ties: the Greek and the -American -universities have agreed to facilitate students exchanges. Lastly, students on both sides of the Atlantic now try to innovate within the health care systems in which they are currently employed.
A project in harmony
The major achievement of this project was that the project was organised so that all partners were able to meet their specific needs. The US universities were helped through placements in the summer, the EU students by innovative courses and short placements in the autumn. The project was prepared fully, as the partners knew each other and their influences were balanced. Success was earned and shared equally.
The experience of diversity as the impetus for -innovation
Students were exposed to different health care systems in real life situations. One major question that came forward was: how does legislation governing these systems impact on health policy development? Students gained insights into the functioning of public and private health care providers and their effectiveness. Students were exposed to discussions such as patient safety, economic analysis, vulnerable groups, cost containment, labour force issues, patient privacy, and health policy in the post-genomic area – issues that dominate current debates in the field.
Students’ experience of successful innovative approaches and methods during their exchanges inspired them to try and develop innovations themselves in their respective countries. As one student puts it:
“The very basis of this exchange experience is that you see a system work elsewhere and you start thinking: how can I adapt my own system to make it better following the examples I have seen working elsewhere.”
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The Cultural and Language Programme
The project contained a cultural programme that proved to work well. For all students a tutor was appointed who prepared them for the language and culture of the country they were going to visit. The programme worked in particular very well for Greece, which has a culture and language that is challenging to access and understand. This was solved by (1) a good introduction to the culture and language by the tutor and (2) by providing American students with EU tutors/fellow students as mentors who also spoke fluent English.
US Partners
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EU Partners
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