A new original research paper featured in the journal International Psychogeriatrics that reports the results of a large qualitative research project, has highlighted consistent fragmentation across health and social care. The study, which involved healthcare professionals (n = 22), social care professionals (n = 13), unpaid carers (n = 37), and people with dementia (n = 14) from European countries (Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom), tried to establish why there is disconnection between health and social care, and illuminate pockets of good practice.
The researcher team, who were brought together through the INTERDEM Taskforce on Inequalities (https://interdem.org/ , worked collaboratively with people with lived experience and a broad multidisciplinary team to develop an interview schedule, translation processes and joint analysis plan, enabling them to bridge a wide geographic area, exposing the extent of fragmentation, regardless of country-by-country idiosyncrasies. Five themes encapsulated experiences: (1) Lack of adequate formal structures of connection; (2) Silo working; (3) Lack of knowledge and awareness; (4) Impacts on unpaid carers; (5) Solutions to care fragmentation.
Whilst experiences were diverse, these themes reoccurred across settings, highlighting their saliency. Some solutions were proposed – for example, scaling up the integration of care coordinators or link workers who can act as a central point of contact. Leveraging existing provision from third sector and non-profit organisations were also seen as a viable option to overcome barriers. Lastly, the authors recommended improving access to multidisciplinary care and training for carers as a means to surmount some of the challenges. The authors argue that the paper lays the foundations for a call to action, with particular emphasise on the need for national policy makers to fund and embed the necessary infrastructural changes that would help optimise pathways and subsequent care experienced.
More information on this study is available here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1041610226000773
