About the project
Akershus University Hospital (Ahus) has (since 2020) developed and piloted an integrated and person-centred healthcare (IHC) model that sets out to improve coordination of care across providers, settings and sectors for frail elderly people with complex care needs.
IHC-research aims to assess to what extent the IHC-model improves quality of life and contributes to more coordinated and effective healthcare in frail older persons with a high consumption of healthcare services.
Methods
The primary objective is addressed through the following three sub-studies aimed at:
(1) Identifying the impact of the IHC-model on healthcare utilization in frail older adults, including the composition of services and associated costs, within and across sectors;
(2) Assessing to what extent the IHC-model affects quality of life and self-management in individual care recipients and their next-of-kin; and
(3) Examining factors that facilitate or impede implementation of the IHC-model.
Analyses are based on data from the health registries to map healthcare utilization patterns, surveys on patient reported outcomes and qualitative interviews with healthcare personnel.
Objective
While the IHC-model has been piloted and is currently in use in five municipalities, scientific evaluation of its effects is lacking.
IHC-research will provide new scientific knowledge on if and how the IHC-model contributes to less fragmented, more coordinated healthcare services and improved outcomes for frail elderly and their next-of-kin, while also taking costs and the experiences of healthcare providers from different sectors into account.
Goals
Findings will inform directions for future research and ongoing developments and priority areas aligning with national, regional and local policies targeting sustainable, person-centred integrated healthcare services.