Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:The Culture of Health Care
Unit:Health Care Settings The Places Where Care is Delivered
Lecture:Range of care
Continuum of care
Slide content:The Continuum of Care Definition Care provided until patient returns to usual function or care is no longer needed Care from birth to death All providers participate in the continuum of care. The primary care provider typically functions as the coordinator and refers to additional providers Two definitions: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10293297 http://www.himss.org/ResourceLibrary/genResourceDetailPDF.aspx?ItemNumber=30272 11
Slide notes:As previously discussed, the patient continuum of care concept involves numerous types of health care provider organizations that participate in providing the required patient services. The patients medical condition directs the specific type of providers and medical services required at any point in time with the main goal of returning the patient to the usual function of daily living or until services are no longer required. This concept has also been described as care from birth to death. As an example, consider the continuum of care involved for a patient who sustained severe injuries in a motor vehicle accident. Numerous services are required, from emergency care to stabilize the patient to surgery to repair the injuries to rehabilitation to return the patient to normal function. If an integrated health care delivery network is accessible, the patient may be able to minimize the number of provider organizations involved in her care. For example, a network may offer orthopedic surgery as well as inpatient and ambulatory postoperative rehabilitative services, whereas other hospitals may not have ambulatory rehabilitative services, and the patient would have to seek out a separate provider to obtain these services. Two very good definitions of the patient care continuum can be found at the links on this slide. 11