This is a pilot project that seeks to improve care for patients with complex needs
The Government of the Generalitat has launched an initiative to integrate social and health services in Osona. This is a pilot project that aims to improve the quality of life of patients who require more coordinated and personalized care, such as the elderly, the disabled, people with chronic diseases or people in situations of dependency.
The Minister of Health, Manel Balcells, and the director of the Catalan Health Service, Marçal Ortuño, met this week with those responsible for social and health services in the region to learn firsthand the situation and define the model of integration to be implemented. According to Balcells, this is a “pioneering and innovative” project that aims to “provide a more efficient and effective response to the needs of patients and their families”.
A multidisciplinary team for each patient
The project is based on the creation of a multidisciplinary team for each patient, made up of professionals from social and health services, both from the hospital and from primary care. This team will carry out a comprehensive assessment of the patient and his environment, and draw up a joint intervention plan, with objectives and monitoring indicators. Thus, the aim is to avoid duplication, contradictions or care gaps, and to optimize the available resources.
Ortuño explained that the project will be developed in two phases. The first, which has already begun, consists of the identification of patients who can benefit from this integration, and the constitution of multidisciplinary teams. The second phase, which will begin in the coming months, will consist of the implementation of the intervention plans and their evaluation. Ortuño added that the project has a vocation for continuity and extension to other counties.
An improvement for patients and professionals
The promoters of the project believe that this integration will mean an improvement for both patients and professionals. For patients, it will involve a more personalized, closer, more accessible and more coordinated care, which will allow them to improve their quality of life and their autonomy. For professionals, it will mean better communication, better training, better case management and better job satisfaction.
The project has the support of the town councils, social organizations and economic agents of the region, who have positively evaluated the initiative. The president of the Osona County Council, Joan Roca, has emphasized that the project “is an opportunity to improve public services and the well-being of citizens”. The president of the Chamber of Commerce of Osona, Josep Maria Riera, added that the project “is an example of collaboration between administrations and sectors to respond to the challenges of the territory”.