Exploration of coordination of care from patient and healthcare professional perspective

Purpose In international literature many strategies are described to improve coordination of care. Due to a lack of clarity about coordination and the underlying concepts, some of these strategies have little or no proven effect. The purpose of this study is to gain more insight in the experiences of patients with breast cancer and health care professionals involved concerning the perceived coordination of care. Theory A phenomenological approach is chosen to study the experiences of patients with breast cancer and all primary healthcare professionals involved. Methods Experienced problems in daily practice are explored using semi-structured in-depth interview with 24 patients and 6 focus groups with healthcare professionals involved in their care. NVivo 8 is used to assist with thematic data analysis. Categories are extracted including concepts from existing frameworks about coordination retrieved through a systematic review. Results and conclusions Preliminary results show a lack of knowledge of healthcare professionals about the roles and expertise of other healthcare professionals involved. Information-exchange between healthcare professionals on the one hand and towards the patient on the other hand is deficient. Patients perceive better coordination if one of the healthcare professionals involved feels responsible for the coordination of care.status: accepte