FEATURED
Positively Healthy Almere – questions and answers
WHAT IS POSITIVELY HEALTHY ALMERE?
Positively Healthy Almere (PGA) is a multi-year collaboration between organizations in healthcare, welfare, education, social services, the municipality, and residents. The starting point is that health is more than just care. The collaboration focuses on sustainable change, not on temporary programs or isolated projects.
What makes this cooperation agreement
different than usual?
The PGA agreement is not a static contract with catch-all terms, but a living, development-oriented framework. It articulates behavior and basic attitudes and is designed to adapt to evolving insights and changing circumstances. The focus is not on control or legal enforcement, but on the shared purpose and how partners take responsibility in a complex daily reality.
Why was chosen for
this form of contracting?
Managers and partners have consciously opted for a different way of collaborating and making agreements, as traditional contracts often don't align well with a transformation process. This agreement supports learning, adjustment, and engaging in meaningful dialogue when tension or uncertainty arises.
How is decision making organised?
WITHOUT VETOES
Within PGA, partners don't use vetoes. Instead, we employ participatory decision-making and the principles of deep democracy: actively involving different perspectives in decision-making. This enhances the quality, legitimacy, and feasibility of decisions and requires explicit leadership and reflection from administrators and others.
How do participants ensure that agreements are made?
also work in practice?
At Postief Gezond Almere, securing doesn't mean fixing, but maintaining. Agreements are regularly discussed in relation to practice. In Almere, we don't avoid tensions and dilemmas, but use them as learning opportunities. This way, the collaboration gradually matures and strengthens its ability to handle conflict.
What does this approach require?
DIRECTORS AND SUPERVISORS?
This way of working requires directors and supervisors to be willing to allow room for learning and uncertainty, without sacrificing their responsibility. It requires a focus on purpose, exemplary behavior, and timely dialogue.
What is the role of The Rechtmakers?
The Rechtmakers have been engaged as facilitators, sparring partners, and legal architects for the collaboration agreement between the 13 initiators. The Rechtmakers will remain available as coaches when needed, with the aim of strengthening the collaboration's self-reliance and preventing dependency.
Whitepaper Positively Healthy Almere
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