Kaiser Permanente has established a not-for-profit subsidiary, Kaiser Permanente International, offering management and advisory services to healthcare organizations around the world.
Kaiser has been engaged in such activities for several years but never has established a separate unit for international work.
In its first project, the unit has entered a $4.5 million, three-year cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development to assist Russia in reforming its healthcare system.
KPI will consult on the design and implementation of several models of integrated healthcare delivery systems in Russia. Three demonstration sites will be established in the Russian states of Kaluga, Samara and Stavropol.
As part of the project, KPI introduced a team of 14 Russian physicians and administrators to the ideas of managed care during a two-week seminar in the United States this month that included tours of healthcare facilities.
KPI also is involved in consulting projects in Australia, Malaysia, Scotland, Singapore, Turkey and Vietnam.