Collectief Poliklinische Farmacie (CPF) is the national outpatient pharmacy network within the Netherlands. As a cooperative organisation, CPF supports almost the entire network of pharmacy entities that are united by a shared commitment: to deliver effective, patient-centred outpatient pharmaceutical care. In recent years, CPF recognised the need to take a step back and reflect on its long-term focus and output. With changes in healthcare delivery, digital innovation, and the broader role of pharmacies in the medical ecosystem, the organisation faced a pressing question; how should CPF position itself strategically for the next 5 to 10 years to ensure continuity in their services of patient centered care?
CPF’s ambitions extended beyond its immediate members’ network. Its leadership understood that any meaningful strategy must account for the wider healthcare ecosystem. This includes not only pharmacies but also insurers, manufacturers, medical centres, and above all, patients. To shape a strategy that reflects this interconnectedness, CPF turned to UMIO/Innovate.
The Process
The collaboration began with a two-month research sprint with the research focusing on understanding the context and experiences of CPF’s diverse partners. Through 17 in-depth interviews conducted across four stakeholder groups; patients, medical centres, insurance companies, and pharmaceutical manufacturers, the team uncovered a rich set of qualitative insights. These conversations revealed both common challenges and shared aspirations across the network. Additionally, patient data was also a factor included in the research and analysis stage, which allowed for a more patient centric focus and approach.
Together with the UMIO/Innovate team, three master’s students from Maastricht University were embedded into the project. These students were integral to the research process, co-developing the sprint, conducting both primary and secondary research, and even presenting the results to CPF stakeholders.
“I studied health sciences as a bachelor at Maastricht University. Now I am finishing my masters in healthcare policy management & innovation at Maastricht University.
I really liked this project because it fits in well with my studies. It is a complex branch of healthcare where both business theories and expertise in healthcare are important which makes it easier to enter the job market after my master’s degree.” – Liza Hamersma, student
Key Insights & Strategic Pillars
As the research findings were analysed, patterns began to emerge. Despite operating in different parts of the system, stakeholders echoed similar needs and frustrations, as well as opportunities for collaboration. From this data, the team distilled four strategic pillars that would ultimately form the basis of CPF’s future direction being;
- Innovation and Digital, highlighting the need to embrace technology not only for efficiency but also to integrate information between partners and improve efficiency, accuracy and patient outcomes.
- Working Together, emphasised the importance of stronger collaboration between care providers, insurers, medical centres and other partners.
- Purpose and Quality Hallmark, calling for a clearer expression of CPF’s identity — including ideas like a quality hallmark and even a franchise model to support consistency and recognition.
- Learning Together, recognised the need to create a shared learning environment that would drive ongoing improvement across the members network.
These pillars were more than just theoretical constructs — they became a foundation for action.
From Vision to Prototypes
To ensure these pillars could be meaningfully implemented, the team worked with CPF to translate each one into tangible prototypes. These early-stage models represented potential projects, initiatives, and experiments that CPF could explore in the short, medium, and long term. By testing these ideas with members, partners, and stakeholders, CPF validated not only the relevance of the strategy but also its practical viability.
This approach transformed a traditional strategic process into a dynamic and collaborative journey, where insights led to ideas, and ideas quickly evolved into action.
The Impact
“Our collaboration with UMIO on the strategic multi-year plan for the Collectief Poliklinische Farmacie has been very valuable. Their research sprint, characterized by a truly co-creative approach and in-depth stakeholder engagement, delivered crucial clarity and actionable insights.
The subsequent strategy sprint was exactly what we needed to define our next steps and truly advance our mission as proactive care providers.” Christian Vader, CPF Treasury Secretary and Pharmacy Director
Through its collaboration with UMIO/Innovate, CPF has established a future-oriented strategy that is grounded in the shared experiences of its stakeholders and reinforced through collaborative validation. The four strategic pillars now guide the cooperative’s development, helping CPF remain resilient and adaptive in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape.
More importantly, the project ensured that strategy is not just a document on paper, but a set of living, evolving practices that are already shaping real-world impact.