The Knowledge and Application of Economics in Healthcare in a High-Income Country Today: The Case of Belgium.

Healthcare is a huge business sector in many countries, focusing on the social function of delivering quality health when people develop illness. The system is essentially financed by public funds based on the solidarity principle. With a large financial outlay, the sector must use economic evaluation methods to achieve better efficiency.

Evaluation of the implementation of Value-Based Healthcare with a weekly digital follow-up of lung cancer patients in clinical practice.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the implementation of Value-Based Healthcare principles for lung cancer patients in a large Belgian hospital. This hospital implemented a digital platform for the collection of patient-reported outcomes and the standardisation of care pathways. Also, a follow-up by the multidisciplinary care team was put in place.

Challenges in organizing a Belgian reference hospital to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic: A case report.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic resulted in an enormous influx of seriously ill patients in the hospitals worldwide. After its initial impact in Asia, Europe also suffered greatly. Caring for COVID-19 patients whist maintaining treatment for patients with other conditions was a complex planning and management challenge.

Clinical handover and handoff in healthcare: a systematic review of systematic reviews.

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review is to appraise and summarize existing literature on clinical handover.

Data Sources: We searched EMBASE, MEDLINE, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.

Study Selection: Included articles were reviewed independently by the review team.

COVID-19 is having a destructive impact on health-care workers' mental well-being.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may aggravate workplace conditions that impact health-care workers' mental health. However, it can also place other stresses on workers outside of their work. This study determines the effect of COVID-19 on symptoms of negative and positive mental health and the workforce's experience with various sources of support.

Systematic screening and assessment of psychosocial well-being and care needs of people with cancer.

Background: Receiving a diagnosis of cancer and the subsequent related treatments can have a significant impact on an individual's physical and psychosocial well-being. To ensure that cancer care addresses all aspects of well-being, systematic screening for distress and supportive care needs is recommended. Appropriate screening could help support the integration of psychosocial approaches in daily routines in order to achieve holistic cancer care and ensure that the specific care needs of people with cancer are met and that the organisation of such care is optimised.

An explorative study on systematic assessment of QOL and care needs with the CARES-SF in the early follow-up of patients with digestive cancer.

Purpose: Systematic assessment of QOL and care needs was applied in two gastroenterology departments to support "Cancer Care for the Whole Patient."

Methods: Patients with digestive cancer were asked to complete the Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System-Short Form (CARES-SF) at the start of treatment and 3 months later. Both times CARES data were processed, and summary reports on the retained insights were sent to the reference nurse for use in further follow-up of the patient.

Healthcare professionals' perspectives on the prevalence, barriers and management of psychosocial issues in cancer care: A mixed methods study.

This cross-sectional mixed methods survey explores healthcare professionals' perspective on their management of cancer patients' psychosocial concerns, and barriers to integrate the psychosocial approach in their work. An invitation for participation was sent to 4,965 inpatient and outpatient working professionals, of which 583 responded (12% response rate), and 368 fully completed the survey. The majority of respondents does not use a systematic approach to discuss patients' psychosocial concerns, 37.

Similarities and differences in the associations between patient safety culture dimensions and self-reported outcomes in two different cultural settings: a national cross-sectional study in Palestinian and Belgian hospitals.

Objectives: To investigate the relationships between patient safety culture (PSC) dimensions and PSC self-reported outcomes across different cultures and to gain insights in cultural differences regarding PSC.

Design: Observational, cross-sectional study.

Setting: Ninety Belgian hospitals and 13 Palestinian hospitals.

Exploring and Evaluating Patient Safety Culture in a Community-Based Primary Care Setting.

Objectives: The primary aim was to measure patient safety culture in two home care services in Belgium (Flanders). In addition, variability based on respondents' profession was examined.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted by administering the SCOPE-Primary Care questionnaire in two home care service organizations.

Seen through the patients' eyes: surgical safety and checklists.

Objective: We sought to explore the views patients have towards surgical safety and checklists. As a secondary aim, we explored if previous experience of error or other patient characteristics influence these views.

Design: A cross-sectional survey study design was applied.

Seen through the patients' eyes: quality of chronic illness care.

Background: Most well-developed healthcare systems are facing the challenge of managing the increasing prevalence of patients with chronic diseases. Comprehensive frameworks, such as the chronic care model (CCM), receive widespread acceptance for improving care processes, clinical outcomes and costs.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore chronic patients' perceptions of the quality of chronic care and the alignment with the CCM.

Seen through the patients' eyes: Safety of chronic illness care.

Objective: Due to the increasing burden of chronic diseases, a considerable part of care delivery will continue to shift from secondary to primary care, and home care settings. Despite the growing importance of primary care, concerns about the safety of patients in hospitals have thus far driven most research in the field. Therefore, the present study sought to explore patients' perceptions and experiences of the safety of primary chronic care.

Systematic psychometric review of self-reported instruments to assess patient safety culture in primary care.

Aims: To give an overview of empirical studies using self-reported instruments to assess patient safety culture in primary care and to synthesize psychometric properties of these instruments.

Background: A key condition for improving patient safety is creating a supportive safety culture to identify weaknesses and to develop improvement strategies so recurrence of incidents can be minimized. However, most tools to measure and strengthen safety culture have been developed and tested in hospitals.

The SCOPE-PC instrument for assessing patient safety culture in primary care: a psychometric evaluation.

Introduction: Primary healthcare differs from hospitals in terms of - inter alia - organisational structure. Therefore, patient safety culture could differ between these settings. Various instruments have been developed to measure collective attitudes of personnel within a primary healthcare organisation.

Qualitative research on the Belgian Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System (CARES): An evaluation of the content validity and feasibility.

Rationale, Aims, And Objectives: The systematic assessment of cancer patients well-being and care needs is internationally recommended to optimize comprehensive cancer care. The Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System (CARES) is a psychometrically robust quality of life and needs assessment tool of US origin, developed in the early 1990s. This article describes Belgian patients' view on the content validity and feasibility of the CARES for use in current cancer care.

The impact of stakeholder involvement in hospital policy decision-making: a study of the hospital's business processes.

Introduction: In many health care systems, strategies are currently deployed to engage patients and other stakeholders in decisions affecting hospital services. In this paper, a model for stakeholder involvement is presented and evaluated in three Flemish hospitals. In the model, a stakeholder committee advises the hospital's board of directors on themes of strategic importance.

Economic Impact of Integrated Care Models for Patients with Chronic Diseases: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: To assess the costs and potential financial benefits of integrated care models for patients with chronic diseases, that is, type 2 diabetes mellitus, schizophrenia, and multiple sclerosis, respectively.

Methods: A systematic search of the literature was performed using EMBASE, MEDLINE, and Web of Science. Studies that conducted a cost analysis, considered at least two components of the chronic care model, and compared integrated care with standard care were included.

Validation of the flemish CARES, a quality of life and needs assessment tool for cancer care.

Background: The Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System (CARES) is a quality of life (QOL) and needs assessment instrument of US origin that was developed in the 90's. Since November 2012 the copyright and user fee were abolished and the instrument became publicly available the present study aims to reinvestigate the psychometric properties of the CARES for the Flemish population in Belgium.

Methods: The CARES was translated into Flemish following a translation-back translation process.

Assessing cancer patients' quality of life and supportive care needs: Translation-revalidation of the CARES in Flemish and exhaustive evaluation of concurrent validity.

Background: The prevalence of cancer increases every year, leading to a growing population of patients and survivors in need for care. To achieve good quality care, a patient-centered approach is essential. Correct and timely detection of needs throughout the different stages of the care trajectory is crucial and can be supported by the use of screening and assessment in a stepped-care approach.

Barriers and facilitators related to the implementation of surgical safety checklists: a systematic review of the qualitative evidence.

Objective: The objective of this review is to obtain a better understanding of the user-related barriers against, and facilitators for, the implementation of surgical safety checklists.

Methods: We searched MEDLINE for articles describing stakeholders' perspectives regarding, and experiences with, the implementation of surgical safety checklists. The quality of the papers was assessed by means of the Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument.

A Factorial Survey on Safety Behavior Providing Opportunities to Improve Safety.

Objectives: To realize safe, high-quality treatment, employees should behave according to patient safety standards. Periodic measurement of safety behavior could provide management-relevant information to adjust the implementation of interventions and maximize improvement. Therefore, we constructed a factorial survey measuring safety awareness and intentions for behavior.

Measuring safety culture in belgian psychiatric hospitals: validation of the dutch and French translations of the hospital survey on patient safety culture.

Objectives: To measure safety culture in Belgian psychiatric hospitals on 12 dimensions and to examine the psychometric properties of the Dutch and French translations of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSPSC) for use in psychiatric hospitals.

Methods: The authors analyzed 6,658 completed questionnaires (70.5% response rate) from a baseline measurement (2007-2009) in 44 psychiatric hospitals and 8,353 questionnaires (71.

Does lean management improve patient safety culture? An extensive evaluation of safety culture in a radiotherapy institute.

Purpose: The importance of a safety culture to maximize safety is no longer questioned. However, achieving sustainable culture improvements are less evident. Evidence is growing for a multifaceted approach, where multiple safety interventions are combined.