Abstract:

It is widely recognized that the healthcare sector is facing several major challenges due to demographic changes, medical and technological advances, increased healthcare costs as well as higher demands and expectations from well-informed citizens. This places great demands on accessibility and requires that working methods in primary care change to meet the future needs in healthcare. This implies that learning has to take place at the primary healthcare center workplace, to respond to rapid changes in society that impact health and well-being, and that are essential for attaining the health-related sustainable development goals and universal health coverage. More effective, efficient and innovative practices are needed. Primary care organizations are increasingly search for ways of learning and redesigning their work practice. There is a gap in the existing literature regarding the role of employees in the learning and transformation processes in healthcare organizations. The healthcare professionals and collaborating partners represent an important source of knowledge, as they know the service demands, the processes of services provided in healthcare, and they have in-depth knowledge of the organizations where the learning and redesigning of work processes take place. There is need to explore the fundamental knowledge resources accessible for the transformation of primary healthcare. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to identify and explore the role and influence of resources important for learning at a primary healthcare center. This is conducted by using a qualitative case study at a primary healthcare center in Sweden.

Seven different themes have been analyzed from the collected data:
(1) values and attitudes;
(2) motivation and driving forces;
(3) leadership and managerial competencies and skills;
(4) routines and common guidelines;
(5) strategies to create sustainability;
(6) relations with internal and external stakeholders; and
(7) identifying present and future stakeholders needs.

Keywords:

Primary healthcare, work practice, learning, resources.