Management continuity in local health networks.

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Healthcare Management
• Patient Experience

Background:

• Patients increasingly receive care from multiple providers across various settings.
• Continuity of care across organizational and professional boundaries is a significant patient expectation.
• Limited research exists on patient perspectives of care coordination across healthcare system gaps.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between local health network integration and patient-perceived management continuity.
• To evaluate patient perspectives on care coordination in different network structures.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey of 256 patients in two Quebec local health networks (2009).
• Utilized a validated instrument to measure management continuity.
• Compared four continuity dimensions between highly integrated and poorly integrated networks.

Main Results:

• Highly integrated networks demonstrated better management continuity scores than poorly integrated ones.
• Improvements were noted in coordinator role, role clarity, and inter-clinic coordination.
• Patient experience of the care plan was the only dimension not significantly different.

Conclusions:

• Patient perceptions of care coordination are influenced by the integration level of healthcare networks.
• Specific aspects of care coordination are identifiable by patients and can serve as valid assessment indicators.
• Findings suggest that enhanced network integration can improve continuity of care from the patient's viewpoint.