International experiments in integrated care for the elderly: a synthesis of the evidence

The OECD countries have recently promoted policies of deinstitutionalisation and community‐based care for the elderly. These policies respond to common cost pressures associated with population aging, and the challenge of providing improved care for the elderly. They aim to substitute less costly services for institutional ones, to improve patient satisfaction and decrease expenses. However, views concerning their success are mixed. We took a comparative cross‐national approach to examine the evidence, to identify common features of an effective system of integrated care, and to examine the potential of such models to positively affect care of the elderly, and public finances.