Innovative Supervision on Organizational Networks: finding the suitable scale.
Authors: Merkus Sander , Minkman Mirella , Camphuijsen Marjolein 
Published: January 2024

Introduction: Organizing integrated care in networks of collaborating care organizations is a complex challenge. One of the aspects of this challenge concerns determining the suitable scale of such networks. Scale is not a simple question of macro/meso/micro but an outcome of the interplay between many different interests, values and perceptions of organizations participating in a network. Another aspect of the challenge of integrated networks is the organization of the supervision of these networks. Contemporary arrangements and instruments for supervision are mostly aimed at individual organizations and not aimed at a integrated network of organizations and the specific functioning of such a network. Supervision on a network as-a-whole instead of individual participant, could make it more feasible for those participants to overcome their own specific interest in order to strive for the common interest of the network.

Organizing innovative supervision on networks and determining the suitable for networks are two connected and interfering challenges. Our workshop will inform about this challenge and on our first research findings from the extensive research program “External and Internal Supervision Methods and Modalities for Organizational Networks Addressing Complex Societal Issues (EISON)”, developed by Professor Minkman, amongst others.

Context & problem: Integral care networks are already always searching and negotiating for het most suitable scale for there endeavors. What are the borders of the network, which organizations should be included? There are several factors in play to determine the suitable scale, in dynamic and complex ways. Meanwhile, when a network is formed, both internal and external supervision of the network should be organized in an innovative manner. This is in itself a puzzling task, and the dynamic and negotiation of finding a suitable scale makes it even harder.

Target audience: We aim to check and validate our initial findings, valuable to improve the discussion about the appropriate scale of integrated care network, and what this means for the supervision of the network-as-a-whole. Our primary target audience consists of participants in long term care organizations operating in integral networks and directors of those participating organizations. However, all professionals involved in integrated care networks can participate.

Facilitation: The workshop will be facilitated by Sander Merkus, senior researchers at Vilans. He will be accompanied by two other researchers from the EISON project - these are yet to be determined, but would probably be Roman Pankow (Tilburg University) and Marjolein Camphuijsen (VU Amsterdam).

 

They will first give and introduction (10 minutes), then continue with a case study example and preliminary findings (20 minutes). Then we will engage in active interaction with the audience, in order to reflect on the findings: are they recognizable, are there any examples from other networks that the members of the audience can give (20 minutes), and we will finish with 5 minutes of feedback and closing, summarizing the key learnings to take home: an increased consciousness for the importance of innovative network supervision, while increasing the sensitivity for matters of scale in integrated care networks.