How should integrated care address the challenge of people with complex health and social care needs? Emerging lessons from international case studies

Around the world, health and social care systems are struggling to cope with the increasing demands for services resulting from rapidly ageing populations with multiple physical, mental, and social care needs. The search for structural or technological solutions gives emphasis to the reorientation of care systems that need to prevent ill health, support self-care, deliver care closer to people’s homes, eliminate waste and duplication, and reduce the reliance on hospitals and long-term care institutions.