Establishing stakeholder priorities for evidence-informed strategies to improve the value of healthcare systems

The implementation of healthcare reform in Canada has been notoriously challenging. Reforms are more likely to succeed because of timing or context changes, such as crises or actions taken by new governments as well as engaging patients and providers in the policy process. The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented crisis. It has exposed and deepened health, race, and gender inequities, and crystalized new challenges like virtual health, mental health, and long term care that require immediate action and open the window for successful healthcare reform. We propose holding a priority setting workshop with a representative partner panel to identify ten reforms that address current needs and are informed by evidence of effectiveness and feasibility. Public, researcher, provider, and policy maker partners will be assembled for a one-day workshop. We will engage 30 partners with a range of knowledge from different geographic locations and health care settings across Canada. Prior to the workshop we will identify a list of potential reform options based on evidence of need, effectiveness, and feasibility. Ten of these potential strategies will be identified as priorities at the workshop, resulting in a list of evidence-informed strategies for healthcare reform in Canada that are acceptable and important to all stakeholders. The ten strategies identified at the workshop will be evaluated to estimate their impact on costs, quality, health outcomes, and equity and to determine any adaptations needed for implementation in provinces and territories. The 2-6 most promising strategies will be presented to policy makers at a National Health Policy Forum in January 2023. By taking advantage of the COVID-19 crisis and bringing together the public, providers, researchers, and policy makers to identify strategies for the "new normal", there is potential to facilitate healthcare reforms that meet the needs of Canadians, the health care system, and decision makers.