There has been significant emphasis in the last several years on care coordination’s role in supporting older adults and in reaching the key aims of health care reform, namely improved patient outcomes, enhanced care experience, reduced costs, reduced provider burnout, and equity in outcomes.
This issue brief provides updates to the 2013 care coordination issue brief developed by Eldercare Workforce Alliance (EWA) and the National Coalition on Care Coordination (N3C). It includes a synthesis of diverse strategies in use and a vision for how services could be improved.
What and why?
Care coordination is a methodical approach to care that facilitates better communication between and among individuals, family caregivers, and service providers. Care coordination is defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) as the “deliberate organization of patient care activities between two or more participants (including the patient) involved in a patient’s care to facilitate the appropriate delivery of health care services.”
Well-designed coordination leads to improved outcomes, efficient care, and optimizes support systems for older adults and family caregivers. Care coordination models have designated protocol and guidelines that allow for consistency in approach, focus and scope of intervention, and workflow.