The Alliance for Healthier Communities' journey to a learning health system in primary care

#Introduction

The Alliance for Healthier Communities represents community-governed healthcare organizations in Ontario, Canada including Community Health Centres, which provide primary care to more disadvantaged populations.

#Methods

In this experience report, we describe the Alliance's journey towards becoming a learning health system using examples for organizational culture, data and analytics, people and partnerships, client engagement, ethics and oversight, evaluation and dissemination, resources, identification and prioritization, and deliverables and impact.

#Results

Many of the foundational elements for a learning health system were already in place at the Alliance including an integrated and accessible data platform. Leadership championed and embraced the movement towards a learning health system, which led to restructuring of the organization. This included role changes for data support personnel, better communication, and dissemination plans, strategies to engage clinicians and other front-line staff, restructuring of committees for more collaborative planning and prioritization of quality improvement and research initiatives, and the development of a new Practice-Based Learning Network for more opportunities to use the data for research and evaluation.

#Conclusions

Next steps will focus on continued clinical engagement and partnerships as well as ongoing reflection on the transition and success of the learning health system work.