MODULE SPECIFICATION
KEY FACTS
Module name
Integrated and Person-Centred Health and Social Care
Module code
HRM007
School
Health Sciences
Department or equivalent
Division of Health Services Research and Management
UK credits
30
ECTS
15
Level
7
MODULE SUMMARY
Module outline and aims
The health and social care landscape is undergoing significant and rapid change.
Advances in health technologies, rising costs of care, increasing consumer demand,
ageing populations, the increasing prevalence of long-term conditions and other
pressures present significant and growing challenges. As a result, health and social
care services are often fragmented and hard to access, and are failing to keep pace
with people’s changing health and social care needs (Ham, 2012). It is increasingly
clear that minor or incremental changes to existing models of care are not sufficient
to address these challenges, and that much bolder approaches are needed.
Integrated care aims to improve quality and efficiency by providing more joined-up,
coordinated health and social care services. It also involves working in partnership
with other sectors, such as housing, education and the criminal justice system. At the
heart of integrated care is person-centred (or personalised) care, the principle that
care should be planned and organised around the needs and preferences of
individuals, carers and communities, so that people have choice and control over the
way their care is planned and delivered. It should engage service users and carers
as equal partners, and put into practice the principle of ‘no decision about me without
me’.
Integrated and person-centred care have been shown to improve health and other
outcomes for service users, and to reduce fragmentation and inefficiencies in service
delivery. It is also seen as a key mechanism for addressing staff shortages, financial
pressures and the growing demand for services. As a result, it is now a top priority
among policymakers in many countries, including England (NHS Long Term Plan,
2019). Key themes include shared decision making and giving people more control
over their own health and care; more effective collaboration between primary care,
community services, local councils and other partners; and ensuring people can
access services such as transport, leisure, education and housing.
Such an ambitious policy agenda clearly has significant implications for health and
social care organisations, and for those professionals directly involved in delivering
care. There are many excellent examples of integrated services delivering significant
