[Factors influencing the use of mechanisms for coordinating healthcare levels in Colombia].

Objective: To analyse the factors influencing the use of mechanisms for the clinical coordination of two Colombian public healthcare networks' healthcare levels in Bogotá from the main social actors' perspective.

Method: This was a descriptive-interpretative, qualitative study of two public healthcare networks. Discussion groups and semi-structured interviews were used for collecting information.

[Adaptation and validation of the CCAENA(©) scale for the measurement of continuity of care between healthcare levels in Colombia and Brazil].

Objective: To adapt and to validate the scale of the questionnaire Continuity of Care between Care Levels (CCAENA(©)) in the context of the Colombian and Brazilian health systems.

Methods: The study consisted of two phases: 1) adaptation of the CCAENA(©) scale to the context of each country, which was tested by two pretests and a pilot test, and 2) validation by means of application of the scale in a population survey in Colombia and Brazil. The following psychometric properties were analyzed: construct validity (exploratory factor analysis), internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha and item-rest correlations), the multidimensionality of the scales (Spearman correlation coefficients), and known group validity (chi-square test).

[Immigrants' access to health care in Spain: a review].

Background: An important proportion of the population in Spain is immigrant and the international literature indicates their inadequate access to health services. The objective is to contribute to improving the knowledge on access to health care of the immigrant population in Spain.

Methods: Review of original papers published (1998-2012) on access to health services of the immigrant population in Spain published in Medline and MEDES.

[Determinants of the use of different healthcare levels in the General System of Social Security in Health in Colombia and the Unified Health System in Brazil].

Objective: To compare the use of different healthcare levels, and its determinants, in two different health systems, the General System of Social Security in Health (GSSSH) and the Unified Health System (UHS) in municipalities in Colombia and Brazil.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out, based on a population survey in two municipalities in Colombia (n=2163) and two in Brazil (n=2155). Outcome variables consisted of the use of primary care services, outpatient secondary care services, and emergency care in the previous 3 months.

[Access to health care in Colombia].

Objectives: Contributing towards improving knowledge about access to health services in Colombia following health-sector reform, highlighting the main results and gaps in research.

Methods: Original papers were systematically reviewed through a comprehensive search and analysis of original papers published between 1994 and 2009. After selection criteria had been applied, 27 papers were included in the review.

[Continuity of care between levels perceived by users of the health system in Catalonia, Spain].

Background: Rapid technological advances, organizational changes in health services and the rise of complex chronic diseases mean that users receive care from a wide variety of providers, threatening continuity of care (CC). The aim is to analyse users' perception of CC, as well as their experienced elements of (dis)continuity in the Catalonian health services.

Methods: Cross-sectional study by means ofa questionnaire survey to a sample of 200 healthcare users attended by more than one level of care for the same condition in the previous 3 months.

[Design and validation of a questionnaire to measure continuity between care levels from the user's perspective].

Objectives: To design and validate an instrument that measures continuity between levels of care from the user's perspective to be applied in any healthcare system providing a continuum of care.

Methods: 1) A questionnaire for the measurement of continuity of care was designed, based on a literature review, and 2) the questionnaire was validated using an expert group, two pretests and a pilot test to a sample of 200 healthcare users. We assessed the questionnaire's comprehensibility, content validity and interviewer burden, as well as the reliability and construct validity of the scale.

[Health policies of national and regional level for the immigrant population in Spain].

Objectives: To analyze the content of health policies for the immigrant population developed by central and regional governments in Spain.

Methods: A descriptive comparative study of central and regional healthcare policies for the immigrant population was conducted in Spain through content analysis. The selected regions were Andalusia, Valencia, Madrid and the Basque Country as these regions have specific policies, distinct proportions of immigrants and policy evaluations.

[Perceived needs of health personnel in the provision of healthcare to the immigrant population].

Objective: To analyze the needs perceived by health personnel in the provision of healthcare to the immigrant population and to provide suggestions for improvement.

Methods: A descriptive, exploratory and phenomenological qualitative study was carried out by means of semi-structured individual interviews and focus groups to a criterion sample of informants: healthcare managers (n=21) and health professionals (n=44) from primary and specialized care. A narrative content analysis was conducted by three analysts, segmented by groups of informants and themes, with mixed generation of categories.

[Factors influencing coordination among healthcare levels according to the opinion of healthcare managers and health professionals].

Objective: To analyze coordination among healthcare levels from the viewpoint of healthcare managers and health professionals in integrated healthcare systems (IHS).

Methods: A qualitative, exploratory and descriptive study was conducted by means of individual semi-structured interviews to a criterion sample. We performed two-stage sampling: in the first stage, IHS were selected and in the second, managers (n=18) and professionals (n=23).

[Reform, equity and efficiency of the healthcare systems in Latin America. An analysis to inform the Spanish aid. 2008 SESPAS Report].

In the 1990s, international financial multilateral agencies promoted changes in the way health systems were financed and organized. Three decades later, equity and efficiency are still central problems of the health systems in developing countries. The present article focuses on the health sector reforms introduced in Latin America in order to draw policy lessons for Spanish aid.

[Impact of a capitation payment system on healthcare coordination].

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the catalan pilot project of capitation payment on healthcare coordination from a qualitative perspective.

Methods: An exploratory, descriptive, qualitative study was carried out by means of document analysis and individual interviews. A criterion sample of documents and of informants was selected: purchasers (9) and providers (26) managers, and health professionals (16).

[Integral health provision by two Catalonian health providing entities (Spain)].

Objective: Health policies aimed at promoting collaboration amongst providers have led to different initiatives, amongst them integrated healthcare delivery systems (IDS); these have been analysed mainly in the USA but hardly so in Colombia or Spain . This article thus analyses the experience of two IDS in Catalonia for identifying elements for improvement.

Methods: This was a case-study carried out via individual semi-structured interviews and analysing documents.

[Barriers and facilitators to health care coordination in two integrated health care organizations in Catalonia (Spain)].

Objectives: To analyze 2 integrated delivery systems (IDS) in Catalonia and identify areas for future development to improve their effectiveness.

Methods: An exploratory, descriptive, qualitative study was carried out based on case studies by means of document analysis and semi-structured individual interviews. A criterion sample of cases and, for each case, of documents and informants was selected.

[Coordination among healthcare levels: systematization of tools and measures].

Improving healthcare coordination is a priority in many healthcare systems, particularly in chronic health problems in which a number of professionals and services intervene. There is an abundance of coordination strategies and mechanisms that should be systematized so that they can be used in the most appropriate context. The present article aims to analyse healthcare coordination and its instruments using the organisational theory.

[Integrated health care organizations: guideline for analysis].

There has been a tendency recently to abandon competition and to introduce policies that promote collaboration between health providers as a means of improving the efficiency of the system and the continuity of care. A number of countries, most notably the United States, have experienced the integration of health care providers to cover the continuum of care of a defined population. Catalonia has witnessed the steady emergence of increasing numbers of integrated health organisations (IHO) but, unlike the United States, studies on health providers' integration are scarce.