title: The role of strategic alliances in ensuring health care quality: a health care system perspective.
abstract: The Chronic Illness Management Research and Development Project (CIMRDP) was created as part of an effort to implement clinical process improvements in HealthSystems Minnesota, a vertically integrated care system in Minneapolis. CIMRDP's objective is to introduce sustainable improvements in the management of chronic illness. These types of quality improvement efforts require fundamental change at the organizational level, which often does not occur, and the programs do not continue beyond the initial stage. Using CIMRDP as a model for a sustainable chronic illness management program, this paper explores the process of implementing clinical guidelines for the management of chronic illness and contending with the complex problem of initiating change at an organizational level. It reviews factors critical to the success of such a program, including the use of focus groups to ensure a patient-centered approach, the advantage of hiring an outside consultant, the question of whether to accept external funding, and an evaluation outline of the six main tasks the program requires. Methods for marketing and integration are also presented.
authors.affiliation: Health Systems Studies Division, Park Nicollet Medical Foundation, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Knutson
mesh_terms: D002908:Chronic Disease; D019981:Health Care Sector / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States