Creating a Community of Care Where Elders Already Live

This week on “Mission Possible,” we step back from the U.S. to explore a unique model from the Netherlands. Thijs de Blok, CEO of Buurtzorg International, joins Anne Montgomery to discuss his organization’s mission to bring care directly to Dutch elders through a network of self-managed care teams.

Based on the belief that people thrive in their own communities, Buurtzorg relies on nearly 900 teams of nurses to provide direct care in elders’ homes – all without managers, and all consisting of no more than 12 individual members.

The idea, according to de Blok, is to provide a seamless combination of formal and informal supports that empower elders to stay connected to the people and activities they love, in the places they’ve always called home.

Tune in to learn more about this incredibly successful alternative to traditional communal care, and how the Buurtzorg principles could be adapted to work in the home, the community, and even new types of forward-thinking care communities.

Learn more about Buurtzorg: https://www.buurtzorg.com/about-us/