Diane Burns

Several crucial documents have identified the need for integrated care to meet patient requirements in the current financial climate, developed from the concepts of self-care and joining up care to improve health outcomes. These include the Five Year Forward View (2014), Next Steps on the Five Year Forward View (2017), NHS Long Term Plan (2019) and now the introduction of the Health and Care Act (2022) - all of which provide a contextualised approach to care. Integrated care is aimed at the way that organisations work together to support self-care (which incorporates the principles of holistic care considering physical, emotional, social, spirtual and ecomonc health [Mills, 2017]), with a commitment to improve patient outcomes by avoiding confusion and repetition. It enhances comprehensive care planning by listening to patients - perhaps best summed up by the phrase, 'No decision about me, without me' (Department of Health [DH], 2012).