Maria Flink

Research problem and specific questionsWorldwide, welfare societies strive to overcome fragmentation of services through increased integration. Despite this, evidence and support is lacking to guide local actors in social services and primary care on how to co-create integration with and for end users, such as older people. The aim is to, together with local actors and older people, develop and evaluate a research-based toolbox to integrate services for older people in need of both social services and primary care.What support do local actors need to co-create, test and monitor improvements of integrated services?What content, structure and design are needed in a toolbox to support local actors in co-creating, testing, and monitoring integrated services?What is the feasibility, perceived value, and impact of the toolbox?Data and methodThis participatory action research project comprises of three work packages (WP). In WP 1, we will use a participatory, longitudinal multiple case study design including four cases to explore actors’ need of support. In WP 2, we will use a Delphi-study design and participatory methods to develop the toolbox. In WP 3, we will use an observational case study design to evaluate feasibility, value, and impact. Data will be generated through structured and semi-structured observations, focus group and individual interviews, and surveys. Data will be analyzed with qualitative and quantitative methods.Societal relevance and utilisationA welfare society reform is launched in Sweden to integrate services and meet the needs of an aging population. However, the task of developing, implementing, and evaluating integrated services is a complex challenge that requires collaborative approaches, involving multiple stakeholders and end users. Yet, this task has been delegated primarily to local actors with limited decision-making mandates and possibilities to involve end users. The toolbox will support local actors with practical tools to co-create integrated services with and for older people.Plan for project realisationThe project will be conducted in collaboration between five Research and Development Units in Stockholm with partnering stakeholders in social services, primary care, and pensioner organizations. Costs for stakeholders’ involvement are included in the budget.

Fall bland personer med multipel skleros (PmMS) är vanligt och leder till fallrädsla, skador, försämrad hälsa och stora samhällskostnader. Fallförebyggande insatser för PmMS bör fokusera på PmMS förmåga att själv hantera sin fallrisk och rikta sig både till personer som är gående och som är rullstolsburna. Vi vill utvärdera om ett fallförebyggande egenvårdsprogram som genomförs i grupp via internet kan minska antalet fall. Forskningsfrågor: 1) Är programmet effektivt för att minska antalet fall hos PmMS efter 6 och 12 månader? 2) Vilka olika faktorer och mekanismer kan förklara varför programmet hade en effekt? 3) Är programmet kostnadseffektivt? Projektet genomförs av vår interdisciplinära forskargrupp där en person med MS ingår. Programmet utvärderas i en randomiserad kontrollerad studie med kvantitativa och kvalitativa metoder. Totalt rekryteras 208 PmMS, både gående och rullstolsburna, där hälften lottas till att delta i programmet och hälften till kontroll. Antalet fall registreras i 12 månader via SMS-utskick. Primärt utfallsmått gällande effekt är antal fall. Intervjuer med ett urval av PmMS som deltagit i programmet samt data från programmets digitala plattform kommer användas vid utvärderingen. För att utvärdera om programmet är kostnadseffektivt samlas data in från PmMS och från databaser. Programmet bidrar till att minska ojämlikhet gällande vård och rehabilitering för PmMS eftersom även PmMS bosatta på orter utan specialiserade MS-centra kan delta i digitala program. Programmets fokus på utveckling av egenvårdförmåga bidrar till att öka PmMS delaktighet i samhället. Om antalet fall minskar leder det till minskade kostnader för individ och samhälle.

Research problem and specific questionsFalls among people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) are common and lead to fear of falling, injuries, impaired health and high societal costs. Fall prevention interventions should focus on development of self-management skills and include non-ambulatory PwMS. We have, in a co-design process, developed a digital group based self-management fall prevention program. The aim is to evaluate this program. Research questions: 1) Is the fall prevention program effective in reducing number of falls in PwMS at 6- and 12-months post-intervention? 2) What contextual factors, mechanisms of impact and implementation aspects can likely explain the effects of the intervention? 3) How do PwMS experience their fall prevention behaviours and strategies in daily life at 6- and 12-months post-intervention?Data and methodThe program is evaluated in a randomized control trial regarding effect and process by quantitative and qualitative methods, in line with recommendation for complex interventions. Recruited are 208 PwMS, ambulatory and non-ambulatory, who are randomised to intervention or control. Number of falls are monitored from allocation until 12-months post-intervention via SMS dispatches. Primary effect outcome is fall incidence. Secondary outcomes include fall prevention behaviours, fear of falling, fall-related self-efficacy, physical activity, participation in daily activities, and impact of MS on health. Semi-structured interviews with a strategic selection of intervention PwMS and quantitative data from the program platform are used for process evaluation.Societal relevance and utilizationThe program contributes to reduce inequalities in care and rehabilitation for PwMS as the digital format gives PwMS living in communities without specialized MS-centres the opportunity to participate. The program’s focus on development of self-management skills contributes to increase social participation in PwMS, and if number of falls are reduced to decrease costs for the individual and the society.Plan for project realizationThe project is carried out by our interdisciplinary research group with expertise in quantitative and qualitative methods and MS. A PhD student will be recruited. Four trained group leaders will deliver the intervention during year 2024. Data are collected before randomization and immediately after and 6- and 12-months post-intervention. Costs are associated with project personnel (PhD student and researchers).

Home rehabilitation for older people is widely implemented, but research on the content and the effectiveness of the rehabilitation interventions used in practice are scarce and we lack of knowledge of how home-rehabilitation units collaborate with social- and health care services. The aim is to evaluate the state of home rehabilitation in relation to scientific evidence and the effectiveness on older persons’ well-being, participation and ability in daily activities as well as the older persons satisfaction with the interventions, the collaboration between social service- and health care providers, and level of service utilization. The design is based on the realist evaluation method, where a defined program theory is used as a base for the evaluation. The main characteristic is to identify context, mechanism and outcomes of the target process. The project will be conducted in Jönköping, Luleå and Stockholm which reflects different parts of the country in relation to size and care organisations. During phase 1, a program theory is established through systematic searches of scientific and grey literature

extracting data, analyzes and synthesizing will be conducted and discussed during four workshops. During phase 2, the context and mechanisms of impact is explored at home-rehabilitation units at the three sites, through observations of interaction between staff and patients, patient record auditing, and focus groups and interviews. During phase 3, the effectiveness of home rehabilitation will be evaluated by patient record auditing, register data, questionnaires and interviews and will be analyzed in relation to the described program theory. An overarching analysis of what, for whom and under which circumstances that home rehabilitation leads to change will be conducted with data from all three phases using mixed methods. The results of identified mechanisms and relevant context factors will be related to the outcomes of effectiveness to identify outcome patterns.

Older adults make up approximately 20% of the Swedish population. The ongoing demographic development, with an ageing population and a continuously larger proportion of older adults, leads to continuously increasing demand for appropriate and efficient geriatric care. One particularly critical moment in the continuum of care for older adults is the transition between different responsible authorities, between regional and municipal care.The project consists of four phases and the aims are (I) to map and assess the situation in terms of health, care activities and resource use after discharge, (II) analyse associations with care-transition outcomes, (III) based on phase I-II, generate viable ideas for addressing and improving the situation, and (IV) implement new and improved ways of working as well as perform a post-implementation evaluation of effects (IV). The design of the study is closed cohorts based on registry data (phases I-II) together with an experience-based co-design (phase III), implementation and evaluation (phase IV).The data set leveraged in phases I-II consists of patient records from geriatric care, health care utilization data for six months after discharge extracted from the Stockholm Regional Healthcare Data Warehouse, socioeconomic data from Statistics Sweden, and data from the National Board of Health and Welfare on social services and death cause. In phase III, an experience-based co-design approach will be leveraged to develop a new model for the coordination of care, where the synthesised knowledge from phases I-II will be used as a base. In phase IV, the co-designed new model of coordination of care will be implemented. To be able to draw adequate conclusion from the outcome analyses, data on the process of implementation will be collected, and frequency of readmission will be the primary outcome measure to evaluate the effect of new ways of working. Costs of readmission will be computed before and after implementation.