OBJECTIVE: The World Health Organization (WHO) recently proposed an Integrated Care for Older People approach to guide health systems and services in better supporting functional ability of older people. A knowledge gap remains in the key elements of integrated care approaches used in health and social care delivery systems for older populations. The objective of this review was to identify and describe the key elements of integrated care models for elderly people reported in the literature.DESIGN: Review of reviews using a systematic search method.METHODS: A systematic search was performed in MEDLINE and the Cochrane database in June 2017. Reviews of interventions aimed at care integration at the clinical (micro), organisational/service (meso) or health system (macro) levels for people aged ≥60 years were included. Non-Cochrane reviews published before 2015 were excluded. Reviews were assessed for quality using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) 1 tool.RESULTS: Fifteen reviews (11 systematic reviews, of which six were Cochrane reviews) were included, representing 219 primary studies. Three reviews (20%) included only randomised controlled trials (RCT), while 10 reviews (65%) included both RCTs and non-RCTs. The region where the largest number of primary studies originated was North America (n=89, 47.6%), followed by Europe (n=60, 32.1%) and Oceania (n=31, 16.6%). Eleven (73%) reviews focused on clinical 'micro' and organisational 'meso' care integration strategies. The most commonly reported elements of integrated care models were multidisciplinary teams, comprehensive assessment and case management. Nurses, physiotherapists, general practitioners and social workers were the most commonly reported service providers. Methodological quality was variable (AMSTAR scores: 1-11). Seven (47%) reviews were scored as high quality (AMSTAR score ≥8).CONCLUSION: Evidence of elements of integrated care for older people focuses particularly on micro clinical care integration processes, while there is a relative lack of information regarding the meso organisational and macro system-level care integration strategies.
To date, a range of qualitative and mixed-methods approaches have been applied to assess the age-friendliness of cities and communities. The Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ) has been developed to fill a gap for a systematic quantitative method approach to evaluate baseline age-friendliness in cities and communities and then measure ongoing efforts to become more age-friendly, aligned with the model by the World Health Organization (WHO). As such, it offers a valid and valuable quantitative method for cities to assess age-friendliness. This paper presents the process and results of a study undertaken to test the validity and reliability of the AFCCQ for the Australian context. It is part of a broader cross-cultural project seeking to test the AFCCQ across Europe, Asia, Oceania, and North America to generate methodological insight and comparable data. Informed by consultation with local experts in population and ageing research, as well as with people aged 65 and over, the instrument proved reliable in the Australian context before being distributed to 334 older people in Greater Adelaide for validation. Results show that the AFCCQ-AU proved a valid and reliable tool for evaluating the age-friendliness of larger cities and communities in Australia. Overall, the total score indicated moderate-good satisfaction with the age-friendliness features of the Greater Adelaide Region with the domain of Housing scoring highest (highly satisfactory). Psychometric validation and cluster analysis led to the identification of five typologies of older people living in Greater Adelaide, characterised by distinct socio-demographic profiles and concomitant experiences and evaluations of age-friendliness. This Australian validation adds further weight to the role of the AFCCQ in being able to assess the age-friendliness of cities and communities across the WHO's Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities. Used in combination with the rich and nuanced qualitative data at the local level, the tool has the ability to create significant outcomes for older people and their communities.
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Background:Many business intelligence surveys demonstrate that Digital Realities (Virtual reality and Augmented Reality) are becoming a huge market trend in many sectors, and North America is taking the lead in this emerging domain. Tourism is no exception and the sector in Europe must innovate to get ahead of the curve of this technological revolution, but this innovation needs public support.Project partnership:In order to provide labs, startups and SMEs willing to take this unique opportunity with the most appropriate support policies, 9 partner organizations from 8 countries (FR, IT, HU, UK, NO, ES, PL, NL) decided to work together: regional and local authorities, development agencies, private non-profit association and universities.Objective of the project:Thanks to their complementary experiences and know-how, they intend to improve policies of the partner regions (structural funds and regional policies), in order to foster a tourist channeled innovation in the Digital Realities sector.Approach:All partners will work together on policy analysis tasks before exchanging their best initiatives and transferring them from one country to another. This strong cooperation will allow them to build the best conditions to foster innovation thanks to more effective structural funds policies and regional policies.Main activities & outputs:8 policy instruments are addressed, among which 7 relate to structural funds programmes. Basis for exchange of experience: Reciprocal improvement analysis and 8 study trips with peer-review of each partner’s practices. Video reportages for an effective dissemination towards other territories in Europe.Main expected results:At least 16 good practices identified. 8 targeted policy instruments improved. At least 27 staff members will transfer new capacities in their intervention fields. At least 8 involved stakeholders with increased skills and knowledge from exchange of experience. Expected 17 appearances in press and media, including at European level.
Digitalisation has enabled businesses to access and utilise vast amounts of data. Business data analytics allows companies to employ the most recent and relevant data to comprehend situations and enhance decision-making. While the value of data itself is limited, substantial value can be directly or indirectly uncovered from data. This process is referred to as data monetisation. The most successful stories of data monetisation often originate from large corporations, as they have adequate resources to monetise their data. Notably, many such cases arise from prominent Big Tech companies in North America. In contrast, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have lagged behind in utilising their digital data assets effectively. They are frequently constrained by limited resources to build up capabilities and fully exploit their data. This places them at a strategic disadvantage, particularly as digitalisation is progressively reshaping markets and competitive relationships. Furthermore, the use of digital technologies and data are important in addressing societal challenges such as energy conservation, circularity, and the ageing of the population. This lag has been highlighted by SMEs we have engaged with, where managing directors have indicated their desire to operate based on data, but their companies lack the know-how and are unsure of ‘where to start’. Together with eight SMEs and other partners, we have defined a research project to gain insight into the potential and obstacles of data monetisation in SMEs. More specifically, we will explore how SMEs can transform data into strategic assets and create value. We attempt to demonstrate the journey of data monetisation and illustrate different possibilities to create value from data in SMEs. We will take a holistic approach to examine different aspects of data monetisation and their associations. The outcomes of this project are both practical and academic, such as an SME handbook, academic papers, and case studies.
