Effectiveness of inter-professional working

A study of the effectiveness of inter-professional working in primary and community care for older people with multiple needs requiring health and social care services

There are many different ways in which practitioners can work together when supporting older people who live at home with complex illnesses and disabilities.

These practitioners will often work for different organisations and include doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists from the NHS, social workers from the local council and care workers from private organisations.

Little is known about how they work together, the methods they use and what is the best way of combining their efforts to meet older people's needs.

This study is lead by Prof Claire Goodman, Prof Vari Drennan, and CRIPACC staff Daksha Trivedi and Frances Bunnwill. The study will examine different types of joint working and will investigate the effect of different ways of working together on the health and well being of older people and their family carers.

Research Questions

What is the evidence of effectiveness for older people's health and wellbeing in different models of inter professional and interagency working in primary and community care.

How do community dwelling older people with multiple needs, and their carers, perceive and define effective inter-professional working across health and social care services and to what extent can these be developed into tools for outcome  measures of effectiveness for inter-professional working in primary and social care

To what extent do different structural models (with attendant variety in supporting infra structures) of inter professional working for community dwelling older people with multiple conditions, impact on the processes, costs, staff morale and user outcomes?

What is the impact of different types of commissioning, incentives and quality scrutiny on inter professional working and its effectiveness for community dwelling older people with multiple needs and their carers?

Study Phases

The study has four parts:

• A review of the research evidence
• A national survey to find out how local health and social care services in England organise different professional groups to work together
• Interviews and group discussions with older people and representatives of patient and older people's organisations.
• A prospective study over 9 months to track the experience of 90 older people and their family carers, who receive support and care from a number of health and social care professionals, who have different approaches to how they work together.

Project information

TOPIC: inTerprofessional working for Older People In the Community

Project funder: National Institute for Health Research Service Delivery Organisation (SDO)

Project grant total: £396097

Project Duration: Three years