Collaborative Partnership

A collaborative partnership is one in which two or more separate organizations depend on each other to be successful in the marketplace. Sometimes this interdependence is informal and short-lived; usually it is a contractual relationship that has a longer time span. Either way, collaborative partnerships are an important vehicle for health care providers to work together within their fragmented industry.

In the 1990s, the health care industry was forced to become more integrated. It did this through outright acquisitions and collaborative partnerships. Collaborative partnerships are most appropriate when an organization is faced with a situation where the outcome desired is strategically important and the initiator needs to preserve an independent relationship with the collaborator(s). Although many organizations have or are currently experimenting with this new approach to delivering value, the leadership skills required to be successful are often quite different from those required to be successful in isolated organizations.

Collaborative partnerships have fueled much innovation in the health care industry. For example, http://Drugstore.com partnered with http://Amazon.com to expand use of the Internet for pharmaceutical purchases. Similarly, HealthSouth Corporation partnered outside of the health care industry with Oracle Corporation to create a wireless information network and centralized medical records database. Within the health care consumer network, the U.S. Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration are forming numerous collaborative partnerships, and health care business coalitions are gaining in strength and reach. Perhaps the greatest exploration of the power of collaborative partnerships comes from the many community health improvement partnerships between hospitals and physicians.