Healthcare Professionals' and Users' Experiences of Intersectoral Care between Hospital and Community Mental Healthcare

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 17; no. 18; p. 6510
• Main Authors: Jørgensen, Kim, Bonde Dahl, Mette, Frederiksen, Jesper
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 07.09.2020; MDPI
• Subjects: Coherence; Collaboration; Community Mental Health Services; Continuity of Patient Care; Delivery of Health Care; Detention centers; Focus groups; Health care; Health care policy; Health Personnel; Hospitals; Humans; Inpatients; Medical personnel; Mental disorders; Mental Disorders - therapy; Mental health care; Professionals; Qualitative Research; multiprofessional care; hospitals’ mental healthcare; intersectoral care; community mental healthcare; patient participation; nurse; recovery; healthcare professionals; users
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17186510

This paper explores healthcare professionals' and users' experience of coherent intersectoral care between hospital mental healthcare and community mental healthcare. A total of 20 healthcare professionals, primarily nurses, and 14 users with a range of mental illnesses participated in nine focus group interviews (FGIs). Participants were encouraged in the FGIs to reflect upon their experience of coherency in intersectoral care. The analysis of FGIs was informed by a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach in a research group from 2016-2019. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research checklist was used as a guideline to ensure complete and accurate reporting of the study. The analysis led to the generation of several themes from a professional perspective and from a user perspective, addressed barriers to coherent intersectoral care. The healthcare professionals experienced barriers such as a lack of common language and knowledge of partners. The users did not feel involved and lacked coherence in their recovery processes and, as such, intersectoral care was often experienced as being lost in a maze.