The Dutch Healthcare Authority (NZa) observes in the second part of the Monitor on improvement potential of medical specialist companies that collaboration between medical specialist companies (MSBs) and hospitals falls short on four key points. The NZa finds this concerning. It is important that MSBs and hospitals collaborate better financially and administratively to ensure accessibility and affordability of care for all residents of the Netherlands in the future.
Progress on improvement points
In the first part of the Monitor, the NZa established eight points for improving hospital governance and financial alignment between MSBs and hospitals. We investigated the progress of these points and conclude that four points have been sufficiently addressed and are no longer considered improvement points. The remaining open points concern greater financial transparency of the MSB, more hospital control in hiring self-employed medical specialists, merging multiple separate MSBs into a maximum of one integrated MSB per hospital, and finally making financial agreements within an MSB that do not have stronger production incentives than the financial agreements the MSB has made with the hospital.
Continue investing in mutual cooperation
The change task for MSBs and hospitals under the Integral Care Agreement (IZA) and the Supplementary Care and Welfare Agreement (AZWA) is significant. Residents of the Netherlands must continue to trust in less complex medical specialist care nearby and in the quality of highly complex care. For the distribution and concentration of this care, sustainable cooperation between MSBs and hospitals is needed, based on equality, transparency, and mutual trust. Therefore, it remains important for hospitals and MSBs to prioritize following up on the eight improvement points where applicable and to further invest in mutual cooperation.