Managing patients with comorbidities: future models of care

One in four adults in the UK have two or more medical conditions. One in three adults admitted to hospital in the UK have five or more conditions. People with multimorbidity have poorer functional status, quality of life and health outcomes, and are higher users of ambulatory and inpatient care than those without multimorbidity. The entire healthcare system needs to change so that it can provide a better service for patients with multimorbidity. The system of healthcare professional education needs to change also. Clinical decision support has a clear role in the management of patients with multimorbidity. But, until now, clinical decision support tools have offered no support when dealing with patients with comorbidities; they have covered single conditions only. In light of this, BMJ Best Practice recently launched the Comorbidities Manager. This enables healthcare professionals to add a patient's comorbidities to an existing management plan and get a tailored plan instantly. This article outlines the importance of taking into account comorbidities when managing patients and the role that the BMJ Comorbidities Manager can play in this regard.