Achieving Integrated Care for Older People: Shuffling the Deckchairs or Making the System Watertight For the Future?

Document Type : Editorial

Authors

1 Adelaide Nursing School, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

2 Adelaide Medical School, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

3 Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, Adelaide Dental School, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

Abstract

Integrated care has been recognised as a key initiative to resolve the issues surrounding care for older people living with multi-morbidity. Multiple strategies and policies have been implemented to increase coordination of care globally however, evidence of effectiveness remains mixed. The reasons for this are complex and multifactorial, yet many strategies deal with parts of the problem rather than taking a whole systems view with the older person clearly at the centre. This approach of fixing parts of the system may be akin to shuffling the deckchairs on the Titanic, rather than dealing with the fundamental reasons why the ship is sinking. Attempts to make the ship more watertight need to be firmly centred on the older person, pay close attention to implementation and embrace approaches that promote collaborative working between all the stakeholders involved.

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Commentaries Published on this Paper

  • Achieving Integrated Care for Older People: What Kind of Ship?; Comment on “Achieving Integrated Care for Older People: Shuffling the Deckchairs or Making the System Watertight for the Future?”

          Abstract | PDF

  • Care Integration – From “One Size Fits All” to Person Centred Care; Comment on “Achieving Integrated Care for Older People: Shuffling the Deckchairs or Making the System Watertight for the Future?”

          Abstract | PDF

Authors' Response to the Commentaries

  • Creating the Right Sort of Ship to Achieve Integrated Care: A Response to Recent Commentaries

          Abstract | PDF

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History

  • Received Date: 03 October 2017
  • Revised Date: 18 December 2017
  • Accepted Date: 19 December 2017
  • First Published Date: 01 April 2018

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