Keywords: Patientjourney, patient pathways
Setting:
The ‘Patient pathways: digital before outpatient before inpatient’ concept was developed as part of the Austrian healthcare reform and aims to optimise patient care through better management based on the guiding principle of ‘digital before outpatient before inpatient’.
Target group:
The target group includes all Austrian citizens, especially patients who use healthcare services, as well as healthcare providers working in primary, secondary and tertiary care.
Description of the innovative practice or project:
The concept defines strategic goals in four central fields of action:
1) Central information and access portal: A centralised portal offers citizens access to health information and eHealth applications. It promotes digital health literacy and enables the seamless use of various health portals.
2) Gesundheitsberatung 1450: Serves as the first point of contact and directs patients to the appropriate care centres. The expansion of telemedical services and the integration of appointment service centres will increase the efficiency and reliability of the consultation.
3) Primary care and strengthening the pilot function/case coordination: Primary care will be strengthened to ensure coordinated and continuous care. This includes the expansion of primary care units and the promotion of interprofessional collaboration.
4) Other digitalisation topics: The use of telemedicine and digital health applications will be expanded to optimise patient care. This includes the introduction of a central appointment service centre and the development of new eHealth applications.
Evaluation:
The needs of citizens and healthcare providers regarding the concept were systematically gathered through a participatory process, yielding valuable insights that inform and support its further development.
Next Steps:
The next steps include the development of a detailed concept.
Lessons learned:
The implementation of the concept has shown that managing patient pathways is complex. This includes, for example, medical progress and the efficient utilisation of limited resources. In addition, the various interests of the system partners must be harmonised to ensure sustainable and high-quality patient care.
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