Understanding the feasibility of integrated care: a rival viewpoint on the influence of actions and the institutional context

✍ Scribed by Arno Van Raak; Ingrid Mur-Veeman; Aggie Paulus

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 125 KB
• Volume: 14
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0749-6753
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-1751(199907/09)14:3<235::aid-hpm552>3.0.co;2-g

✦ Synopsis

There is in Europe growing awareness that the delivery of integrated care is required to meet the demands of an increasing number of patients with multiple problems. It is also clear that the provision of integrated care is dicult to achieve. As yet, the debate about the circumstances enabling or hindering provision is not settled. The objective of this article is to generate more knowledge on this issue.

It is often assumed that the feasibility of integrated care provision is caused by characteristics of the legislation, the ®nancing system and other aspects of the institutional context. Here it is argued that these characteristics are relevant but not decisive. Based on empirical evidence from the Dutch case a rival viewpoint is presented, suggesting that it is the commitment of the actors involved, their support, and the way developments are being managed, that make the dierence. Following presentation of the evidence, the implications of the ®ndings for integrated care policy are discussed.