In an era of rapid demographic change, economic restraint, and an increasing role of Norwegian municipalities in the provision of health services, the project aimed to understand how we can achieve healthy ageing by designing high quality care systems is essential. Public policy emphasises integration and continuity of care as key components in achieving this.
About the project
This project was organised in four sub-studies that each addresses a central current question of how to develop good pathways for older people:
- How do Municipal Acute Units function in practice and how their performance may be maximised?
- How can we reduce medication misuse and medication related harm among older people?
- What role do family caregiving play in the delivery and integration of care to dementia patients?
- How can services provide good palliative services for older people in a multicultural society?
From these sub-studies we can address topics such as quality of life in old age, the relationship between formal and informal care (i.e., provided by family caregivers), and the perspectives of family caregivers on the integration of care for older people.
The project is based at HØKH –Health Services Research Unit at Akershus University Hospital, in collaboration with a range of national and international researchers and our user panel.
Results
The project has resulted in 30 scientific articles and 45 presentations. Popular science summaries, podcasts and instruction films to service users, health professionals and educators are available at www.kompetansebroen.no. The podcasts can also be found in ITunes and Spotify.
Financing
The Research Council of Norway