Abstract
Background: There is a growing international dialogue surrounding improving public services by shifting to an integrated health and social care approach. A key aspects of advancing integrated care is to share assessments, diagnostics and care plans, between health and social care systems. Shared records can improve the continuum of care, and care coordination while enhancing a patient centred-approach. This study seeks to understand data-sharing practices across health and social care and barriers to the integration of data systems.
Approach: Qualitative interviews were designed to map data-sharing practices in integrated health and social care services in the Sydney metropolitan and analysed in alignment with the Wodchis Policy Supports Framework.
Results: 27 participants from 25 health and social care services were interviewed. Social care organisations reported having less internal technology support compared with health-led organisations. ICT data-sharing practices reported to be limited. Barriers to data-sharing include the ability to meet data security, trust in government to safely handle consumer data, lack of interoperability, and ICT support. Facilitators to data-sharing are partnerships across sectors, and providers’ flexibility, and innovative ways of capturing data.
Implications: Data-sharing challenges in health and social care services in Sydney exists. Increasing advocacy and improving information technology functionally, interoperability and infrastructure, as well as data-sharing agreements across sectors can increase integrated information sharing.
Keywords: Health and social care, data sharing, agreements, electronic records