The LINNEAUS Euro-PC collaboration was a co-ordination action funded by the European Framework 7 research programme and its main focus was to build a network of researchers and practitioners working on patient safety in primary care across the European Union. The lead partner was the University of Manchester which has supported EURIPA to undertake a literature review to examine the impact of isolation and rurality on patient safety in primary health care settings in Europe. This was followed by a workshop in September 2012 with members of EURIPA, EQuiP and the Linnaeus project to explore the issues for rural primary care further. Over the 2 day period the attendees discussed gaps in knowledge, the challenges, the opportunities and how best patient safety could be addressed in rural practice.
One of the outcomes from the Manchester workshop was the Rural Proofed Manchester Patient Safety Framework (MaPSaF) tool, which was published in 2013, in partnership with the Linnaeus. EURIPA undertook the rural proofing exercise to ensure that the MaPSaF tool was relevant to rural family practice.
EURIPA published its first research report in 1999 funded under BIOMED II research programme:
A collaborative analysis of public health and health service issues in rural areas