One patient, many places: Managing health care transitions, Part I: Introduction, accountability, information for patients in transition

T his series of articles addresses how healthcare organizations (ie, organized or inte-grated care systems or large providergroups that receive payment under either a capitated or fee-for-service basis) can improve the quality of transitions among care venues for patients with complex care needs. Part I provided an intro-duction and discussed strategies for ensuring ac-countability for patients in transition and facilitat-ing the effective transfer of information. Part II focuses on enhancing practitioners ’ skills and sup-port systems, and enabling patients and caregivers to play a more active role in their transitions. Part III will address the need to align financial and struc-tural incentives to improve patient flow across care venues, and will recommend steps organizations can take to initiate a quality improvement strategy for transitional care