Integrating Primary and Secondary Care to Enhance Chronic Disease Management: A Scoping Review

In Ireland, as in many healthcare systems, health policy has committed to delivering an integrated model of care to address the increasing burden of chronic disease.

Integrated care is an approach to healthcare systems delivery that aims to minimise fragmentation of patient services and improve care continuity. To this end, how best to integrate primary and secondary care is a challenge.

This paper aims to undertake a scoping review of empirical work on the integration of primary and secondary care in relation to chronic disease management.

Elements and Performance Indicators of Integrated Healthcare Programmes on Chronic Diseases in Six Countries in the Asia-Pacific Region: A Scoping Review

Globally, hospital-based healthcare models targeting acute care, are not effective in addressing chronic conditions. Integrated care programmes for chronic diseases have been widely developed and implemented in Europe and North America and to a much lesser extent in the Asia-Pacific region to meet such challenges.

This scoping review aims to examine the elements of programmes identified in the literature from select study countries in the Asia-Pacific, and discuss important facilitators and barriers for design and implementation.

A Community Resource Navigator Model: Utilizing Student Volunteers to Integrate Health and Social Care in a Community Health Center Setting

While unmet social needs are major drivers of health outcomes, most health systems are not fully integrated with the social care sector to address them. 

This case study describes the development and implementation of a model utilizing student volunteer community resource navigators to help patients connect with community-based organizations. The authors then detail initial implementation outcomes and practical considerations for future work.

Integrated Healthcare Systems Response Strategies Based on the Luohu Model During the COVID-19 Epidemic in Shenzhen, China

COVID-19 has affected primary health-care delivery in metropolitan areas. An integrated health-care system offers advantages in response to the community outbreak and transmission of highly infectious diseases.

On the basis of practitioner experience with a pioneering integrated health-care system in Shenzhen, China, this article presents the following effective strategies in response to the epidemic: (1) enhance the public workforce in primary health care; (2) integrate resources to allow regional sharing and efficient use; (3) employ teams centered on general practitioners for community containment; and (4) adopt e-health and telemedicine for healthcare delivery.

An integrated health-care system is usually very specific ...

Capacity building of health care professionals to perform interprofessional management of non-communicable diseases in primary care – experiences from Ukraine

Non-communicable diseases are leading causes of death and disability across the world. Countries with the highest non-communicable disease (NCD) burden in the WHO European Region are often those that have some of the greatest health system challenges for achieving good outcomes in prevention and care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an interprofessional capacity building intervention carried out in Ukraine to improve the management non-communicable diseases in primary health care.

Digital tools as promoters for person-centered care practices in chronic care? Healthcare professionals’ experiences from rheumatology care

Person-centered care (PCC) emphasize the importance of supporting individuals’ involvement in care provided and self-care. PCC has become more important in chronic care as the number of people living with chronic conditions is increasing due to the demographic changes. Digital tools have potential to support interaction between patients and healthcare providers, but empirical examples of how to achieve PCC in chronic care and the role of digital tools in this process is limited. The aim of this study was to investigate strategies to achieve PCC used by the healthcare professionals at an outpatient Rheumatology clinic (RC), the strategies’ relation to ...

A mixed-methods evaluation of the impact of a person-centered family planning intervention for community health workers on family planning outcomes in India

Person-centered quality for family planning has been gaining increased attention, yet few interventions have focused on this, or measured associations between person-centered quality for family planning and family planning outcomes (uptake, continuation, etc.). In India, the first point of contact for family planning is often the community health care worker, in this case, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs).

A multilevel study of patient-centered care perceptions in mental health teams

The successful combination of interprofessional collaboration in multidisciplinary teams with patient-centered care is necessary when it comes to delivering complex mental health services. Yet collaboration is challenging and patient-centered care is intricate to manage. This study examines correlates of patient-centered care such as team adaptivity and proactivity, collaboration, belief in interprofessional collaboration and informational role self-efficacy in multidisciplinary mental health teams.

Healthcare professionals’ perceptions of community-based rehabilitation in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

People with disabilities (PWDs) continue to experience challenges with access to healthcare. Community-based rehabilitation (CBR) is an approach that advocates for equal opportunities and social inclusion of PWDs to enhance their quality of daily life. Healthcare professionals are crucial in the implementation of CBR. However, little is known about the perception of healthcare professionals on this approach to rehabilitation in South Africa.

Achieving integrated care: the need for digital empowerment

In this article, Knight and Burdett look at the complex challenges involved in integrating care systems as part of the NHS Long-Term Plan of 2019, and the importance of digitalising services and records for implementing this.