Ditte Maria Sivertsen, Ulrik Becker, Ove Andersen, J. Kirk
{"title":"Between acute medicine and municipal alcohol treatment: Cross-sectoral collaborations regarding patients with alcohol problems","authors":"Ditte Maria Sivertsen, Ulrik Becker, Ove Andersen, J. Kirk","doi":"10.1177/14550725241252256","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Aim: The aim was to examine cross-sectoral collaborations of a Danish emergency department (ED) and two municipal treatment centres in the uptake area regarding patients with alcohol problems. Methods: The study was a qualitative exploratory study. We conducted individual interviews with ED nurses and secretaries ( n = 21) and group interviews ( n = 2) in municipal alcohol treatment centres with three and four participants, respectively. Interviews were analysed, first with qualitative content analysis, then by applying the analytical concept “boundary object”. Results: Three themes emerged: (1) Responsibilities in practice; (2) Professional contrasts; and (3) The social nurse in a unique position. Themes illuminated a low degree of collaboration characterising the intersectoral work. Blurred responsibilities, challenged communication and acute versus long-term focus were some of the factors not supporting cross-sector collaborations. However, the function of the social nurse was highly appreciated in both sectors and plays a central role. Nonetheless, implicit limitations of this function entail that not all patients with alcohol problems are referred and handled within an ED setting. Conclusions: Overall, we found a lack of collaborative work between healthcare professionals in ED and municipalities for patients with alcohol problems. However, the “social nurse” function was greatly valued in both sectors due to a mediating role, since healthcare professionals in both sectors experienced lack of organisational structures supporting collaborative network, perceived temporal barriers, limited knowledge exchange and differences in approaches to patients.","PeriodicalId":46180,"journal":{"name":"Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9000,"publicationDate":"2024-05-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs","FirstCategoryId":"90","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/14550725241252256","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"SUBSTANCE ABUSE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Aim: The aim was to examine cross-sectoral collaborations of a Danish emergency department (ED) and two municipal treatment centres in the uptake area regarding patients with alcohol problems. Methods: The study was a qualitative exploratory study. We conducted individual interviews with ED nurses and secretaries ( n = 21) and group interviews ( n = 2) in municipal alcohol treatment centres with three and four participants, respectively. Interviews were analysed, first with qualitative content analysis, then by applying the analytical concept “boundary object”. Results: Three themes emerged: (1) Responsibilities in practice; (2) Professional contrasts; and (3) The social nurse in a unique position. Themes illuminated a low degree of collaboration characterising the intersectoral work. Blurred responsibilities, challenged communication and acute versus long-term focus were some of the factors not supporting cross-sector collaborations. However, the function of the social nurse was highly appreciated in both sectors and plays a central role. Nonetheless, implicit limitations of this function entail that not all patients with alcohol problems are referred and handled within an ED setting. Conclusions: Overall, we found a lack of collaborative work between healthcare professionals in ED and municipalities for patients with alcohol problems. However, the “social nurse” function was greatly valued in both sectors due to a mediating role, since healthcare professionals in both sectors experienced lack of organisational structures supporting collaborative network, perceived temporal barriers, limited knowledge exchange and differences in approaches to patients.