Hospital networks in Italy: state of the art and future pespectives. Insights from a qualitative research study.

G. Damiani1, M. Di Pumpo*1, G. Giubbini2, L. Lombi3, M.L. Specchia1, L. Sommella4

1 Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore – Rome, Italy
2 Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS – Rome, Italy
3 Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore – Milan, Italy
4 Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “Campus Bio-Medico di Roma” – Rome, Italy

Keywords: Hospital networks, complexity, integration/coordination, governance, future developments.

ABSTRACT

Background

Hospitals have undergone important that changes that have led, in recent decades at the international level, to the need for greater integration between hospitals and local healthcare services. The main institutional networks that have been developed in Italy are, as commended by the institutional levels, of 4 main types: the Emergency-Urgency Network, the Time-Dependent Networks, the Oncological Networks, and the Networks with primary care settings. It was important to assess the state of the art and analyze it in relation to possible future developments.