Reviews of the Shared Medical Appointments: Adopting Innovations in Care Delivery for Patients with Chronic Diseases
10.4332/KJHPA.2020.30.3.277
- Author:
Hyunju LEE
1
Author Information
1. Medimaru Business Research, the Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
- Publication Type:REVIEW ARTICLE
- From:Health Policy and Management
2020;30(3):277-285
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:0
-
Abstract:
Chronic diseases as well as a growing population of older adults are currently the leading cause of ill health and economic burden worldwide. Managing those diseases in one-on-one medical consultations poses substantial challenges due to limited time and resources in the current health care system. Various approaches have been taken to manage these conditions, most with limited success. Shared medical appointments (SMAs) are an innovative care delivery option to make the testing of alternative care modalities a prime concern. SMAs are individual medical consultations carried out in a group of patients with similar diseases by providing education, medication management, and disease monitoring. SMAs, since their initial conceptualization in 1998, have gained much popularity and adopted as one of the standard processes in many countries. Accumulated evidence-based studies show outcomes for increasing access to care, behavioral change facilitated through self-management education, maintained/better outcomes, physician productivity, and enhanced resource management. This review summarizes current evidence regarding the existing status of SMAs abroad. An extensive literature search was conducted on major electronic databases including PubMed and Google Scholar. This study suggests to explore and exploit the SMAs which have unique potential as a healthcare delivery innovation in Korea.
