Health and Social Care
Health and social care is about how well we are looked after, including our day-to-day care needs and the wider community support services we might need. It includes the services we use as a result of our physical or mental health problems and the care for people who are elderly, ill or disabled. This care may be provided by the NHS, local authorities or by private companies.
Many countries struggle to integrate health and social care at the operational level. They often face insufficient governance, opaque patient eligibility rules and lack of enablers such as data. To be successful, integration must address all of these issues. It also requires a shift in mindset from siloed departments to a holistic approach that recognizes the interconnectedness of health and social care for the individuals in their care.
Across the United States, national policies have catalyzed initiatives to advance integrated health and social care through new models of service delivery and financing. These efforts include screening patients for social risks and needs, building cross-sector partnerships to provide navigation supports and connecting community resources with health clinics through technology referral platforms. Early experience has emphasized the need for validated measures of social risk, engagement of health system leadership and frontline staff and greater flexibility from policymakers to align incentives across sectors.
When a care professional works in Health and Social Care, they are expected to have knowledge of the health, social, emotional and cultural needs of their clients. As a result, they must be able to communicate well and build trusting relationships. They should also be able to help their clients to understand their options and make decisions about their care. This can be a very rewarding job, but also challenging.health and social care