In a recent report by CeRiSMaS (Centre for Research and Studies in Health Management), entitled “Outsourcing in health care: a model in constant evolution” (in Italian),  some key elements are highlighted for understanding the phenomenon of outsourcing health services and how this impacts on national health service.

In an interview with Filippo Cristoferi, management expert and researcher at the Ce.Ri.S.Ma.S., confront various themes, which allow you to understand how the health outsourcing process is still in progress in Italy, unlike other situations where such a mechanism is already in operation, to understand how the future will go in an ever-increasing integration of this mode of production also in other areas.

Cristoferi, graduated in Management from the Catholic University of Sacro Cuore in Milan and expert in Balanced Scorecard and Public-Private Partnership, answers some specific questions on the topic. Let’s look at some of the most interesting aspects touched on in the article.

The objectives of outsourcing health

The expert refers primarily the central aspect of the matter: the sustainability of the system. The outsourcing of services is not limited to establish a new relationship between public and private but allows you to create virtuous circles thus saving resources. But Cristoferi adds to this theme already known another key issue in evaluating the opportunities brought by outsourcing: the addition of new skills are difficult to integrate in the previous model.

Cristoferi claims that he thought that “this would enable them to have specific skills that the organization made by private partners, not otherwise available.” Not only, therefore, with a view to spending review in the perspective of an added value to be provided to end users of the service. Optimization at 360 degrees, in fact.

The mixture between public and private

It ‘sa question the old debate on the integration between the public and private sectors. The doubts raised by some lie in the fact that the logic of private can not guarantee the achievement of certain goals such purely public. A mixture, a slurry, a collaboration, however, does not exclude that one or the other but also makes them interact fruitfully, seems to be a successful solution.

The integration is already under way, says Cristoferi, which indicates that the public there has been a radical change of mentality, because it has “understood the need and cost to outsource part of its duties to other individuals most likely to carry them out, thanks slenderness and flexibility that can boast with respect to the public entity. “

A new method of evaluation

One of the hottest topics in the integration between public and private is that of assessment. In the past, in fact, were adopted assessment systems that focus only on economic performance. The Balanced Scorecard, however, seeks to take into account non-financial indicators such as patient satisfaction and quality of service provided.

The expert says that the evaluation is not an “exact science” and therefore improvements are always possible. From what we read in the interview you can say that, even in Italy, the integration of the private in the NHS is now an irreversible process.