The term Buurtzorg may not ring a bell. However when translated to Neighbourhood care, many will now understand the concept. Buurtzorg is a Dutch model that is going global and is a possible solution to the challenges facing healthcare systems across the world. Many countries facing various health care problems: the quality and cost of care, poor outcomes, lack of access to care, lack of transparency of information, and a growing dissatisfaction among both patients and caregivers.

Buurtzorg is all about the idea of small groups of nurses, teams up to 12 nurses, working in a neighbourhood, having around 40 to 60 patients. This system was founded 12 years ago by nurse, Jos de Blok. They started with an initial team of four and are now around 900 teams in the Netherlands. The interest in Buurtzorg is rapidly becoming a global phenomenon. Buurtzorg teams were launched in Sweden in 2011, in Minnesota in 2013, and it is anticipated that organizations modeled after Buurtzorg will emerge in Switzerland and Belgium within 2 years. In 2014 Buurtzorg Neighbourhood Care Asia was established. Japan, China, Taiwan, and India are one of the few countries involved with the Buurtzorg project. The objective was to first adapt and then implement the model of community-based, integrated care for the elderly. Working together with local services seems to be the key to success.

The company believes in “humanity over bureaucracy” and that belief deeply impacts the patients and those who care for them. Buurtzorg not only operates in the Netherlands, it is a perfect blueprint for countries with a health care deficit. Eliminating overpaid managers, luxurious offices, and layers of bureaucracy makes sure that the health care cost stay as low as possible. This is also part of the strategy of CareChamp. We assist our clients via the phone, email, website, and our personal CareChamp App. CareChamp currently employs four care coordinators and they managed over 800 bookings, only in the month of September.