Health care professionals work in a rapid paced environment therefore, continuity of care is often neglected. Today with many patients living longer lives and advancements have allowed for management of chronic illness a continuum of care must be in place to improve patient outcomes. In order for a patient to receive the highest quality of care moving through the fast paced complex health care setting today continuity must be achieved to ensure patient satisfaction. When the patient is satisfied with the treatment and continuity has allowed for the patient to have a better understanding of his or her illness patient outcomes and goals can be met at a more achievable rate. Modern hospitals …show more content…
Currently in today’s health care practice setting there are three identified types of continuity known as informational, relational, and management continuity. Informational continuity can be defined as documented data and information related to the patient including medical conditions, history, and even patient’s preferences. This type of continuity connects information from one provider, or event to another health care provider or facility. Management continuity is often used when trying to manage complex or chronic disease processes that necessitate long-term management of the patient’s illness. Due to the complexity of various illnesses many require more than one discipline or health care professional to interact with one another in order for the patient to access the broad range of services to facilitate management of care. This type of continuity requires health care providers and professionals to be flexible yet consistent, and adapt to each individual’s requirements as well as circumstances. Relational continuity according to Burge et al. (2011), “a therapeutic relationship between a patient and one or more providers that spans various healthcare events and results in accumulated knowledge of the patient and care consistent with the patient 's …show more content…
In order to achieve quality care continuity of care must exist to attain both expected patient outcomes and satisfaction. According to Huxtable, Roberts, Somogyi, and Macintyre (2011), “Treatment aims include effective relief of acute pain, prevention of drug withdrawal, assistance with any related social, psychiatric and behavioural issues, and ensuring continuity of long-term care collaborative, interdisciplinary approach, working closely with other treating clinicians in both the hospital and community, in order to maintain continuity of patient care, is particularly important.” Disease management is a common concern for continuity in medical specialties due to the increasing difficulty of managing long term diseases such as diabetes, cancer, or mental health. Due to the continuing concern over managing long term diseases continuity is important in order to deliver care of services needed. Without continuity care would be fragmented and there would be a decrease in healthy patient