Care Coordination Models and Tools-Systematic Review and Key Informant Interviews

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Health Services Research
• Patient Care Coordination

Background:

• Care coordination (CC) aims to mitigate healthcare fragmentation and improve care continuity.
• The effectiveness of CC in meeting patient needs and enhancing outcomes remains uncertain.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the evidence on the effectiveness of care coordination interventions.
• To identify key characteristics and implementation strategies of successful CC interventions.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive literature search of multiple databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, etc.) up to September 2019.
• Inclusion of systematic reviews (SR) and primary studies evaluating CC for community-dwelling adults at risk for acute care.
• Data abstraction on intervention characteristics, patient populations, outcomes (hospitalizations, ED visits, patient experience), and implementation settings.

Main Results:

• 16 SRs were eligible, focusing on case management, transitional care, and intensive primary care models.
• Most SRs reported inconsistent effects of CC on reducing hospitalizations and ED visits; patient experience data was limited.
• Effective CC interventions were implemented across various settings and utilized diverse patient-provider communication strategies.

Conclusions:

• Care coordination interventions demonstrate variable effectiveness in reducing hospitalizations and ED visits.
• Future research should focus on adapting CC interventions to specific healthcare settings and identifying optimal implementation tools and approaches.