Lessons for achieving health equity comparing Aotearoa/New Zealand and the United States

Aotearoa/New Zealand (Aotearoa/NZ) and the United States (U.S.) suffer inequities in health outcomes by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. This paper compares both countries’ approaches to health equity to inform policy efforts. They developed a conceptual model that highlights how government and private policies influence health equity by impacting the healthcare system (access to care, structure and quality of care, payment of care), and integration of healthcare system with social services

Increasing advance personal planning: the need for action at the community level

Advance personal planning is the process by which people consider, document and communicate their preferences for personal, financial and health matters in case they lose the ability to make decisions or express their wishes in the future.

There is a need for rigorous evidence to demonstrate wheter a community action approach is effective in estabilishing whole community adoption of advance personal planning. 

Coordinating Mental and Physical Health Care in Rural Australia: An Integrated Model for Primary Care Settings

The "GP Clinic" providers primary health care to people using community mental health services in a small town in Australia. This article examines the factors that have driven successful integration in this rural location. Integrated physical and mental health service models that focus on building local service provider relationships and are responsive to community needs and outcomes may be more beneficial in rural settings than top down approaches that focus on policies, formal structures, and governance. 

Achieving Integrated Care for Older People: Shuffling the Deckchairs or Making the System Watertight For the Future?

Integrated care has been recognised as a key initiative to resolve the issues surrounding care for older people living with multi-morbidity. Multiple strategies and policies have been implemented to increase coordination of care globally however, evidence of effectiveness remains mixed. The reasons for this are complex and multifactorial, yet many strategies deal with parts of the problem rather than taking a whole systems view with the older person clearly at the centre. 

Family Medicine Clinic: a case study of a hospital–family medicine practice redesign to improve chronic disease care in the community in Singapore

Singapore´s health care system is strained by the health care needs of a rapidly aging population. The unprecedented collaboration between a public hospital and a private family practice to set up the Family Medicine Clinic (FMC) to co-manage patients with chronic desease is an example of efforts to shift care to community. 

Translating the Elements of Health Governance for Integrated Care from Theory to Practice: A Case Study Approach

Against a paucity of evidence, a model describing elements of health governance best suited to achieving integrated care internationally was developed. The aim of this study was to explore how health meso-level organizations used, or planned to use, the governance elements. 

The Western Sydney Integrated Care Program (WSICP): Qualitative Evaluation

The ageing population together with an increasing prevalence of chronic conditions require a systems wide integrated approach to health care. This includes overcoming barriers between primary and secondary care, physical and mental health, and health and social care in order to provide patient centred care. In Australia, the New South Wales Ministry of Health is piloting an innovative Integrated Care Program in Western Sydney, foccussed on care facilitator roles to coordinate patient care between General Practices and hospitals. 

Using Information Communication Technology in Models of Integrated Community-Based Primary Health Care: Exploring ICT in the iCOACH Study

Information and communication technology (ICT) is a promising enabler to support delivery of integrated care by inter-disciplinary teams by supporting information sharing across professional and  organizational boundaries; arguably a crucial aspect of successful models of integrated care

Effective Organizational Leadership in the Implementation of Integrated Care; Lessons from 9 cases in the iCoach Project

Policy makers in many countries are encouraging the development of integrated care strategies and the development of new models of integrated care. These new models require changes at a clinical or service level, organizational level and system level with strong leadership necessary at all three levels. Despite the key role of leadership in these efforts, there has been only limited study of what organizational leadership approach is successful in different contexts for integrated care. 

The theory and practice of integrative health care governance: The case of New Zealand’s alliances

The purpose of this paper is to outline the theory and practice of governance for integrated care, using the case of New Zealand´s healthcare alliances.