Information sharing for the management of chronic conditions in primary health care: How does it work and what are the outcomes?

The prevalence of chronic health problems is increasing across Australia. Finding ways to maximise effective use of resources in this area is particularly important given that expenditure on chronic conditions already accounts for the majority of all health care spending. Prior research indicates that chronic health problems are most effectively managed through a collaborative approach where clients and health workers from various disciplines work together to achieve defined goals. The use of care plans can assist in facilitating this collaboration and in fostering effective communication. To address the gaps in knowledge about how these processes are currently operating, our research investigated the information sharing processes that are used within the care planning process to identify how they work and to explore client and health worker experiences of them.