Integrating Physical, Mental, and Psychosocial Health in Primary Care: Collaborative Management Approach

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2026 | Viewed by 416

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences of Melilla, University of Granada, 52071 Melilla, Spain
2. Research Unit of Excellence of the Malilla University Campus (EUCUMEL), 52005 Melilla, Spain
Interests: mental health; psychosocial factors; physical activity; health promotion; psychological well-being; cardiopulmonary resuscitation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The growing interaction between physical health and mental health represents one of the major challenges facing contemporary healthcare systems, particularly in the fields of primary care and health education, which must move toward more humanized and comprehensive models of care.

This complexity is strongly shaped by psychosocial factors and lifestyle behaviors, which directly influence psychological well-being, disease onset, and disease progression. Addressing these interrelated dimensions requires integrated, person-centered care models oriented towards health promotion.

Within this framework, collaborative care models have emerged as effective strategies for improving interdisciplinary coordination, optimizing continuity of care, and fostering positive outcomes at both the clinical level and in terms of psychological well-being.

In parallel, physical activity is recognized as a key and cross-cutting intervention, supported by robust evidence of its benefits for both physical and mental health, acting as a modulator of stress, quality of life, and emotional resilience.

Complementarily, psychoneuroimmunology provides an explanatory framework for understanding the underlying mechanisms through which psychosocial factors and lifestyle behaviors influence health and disease processes.

The integration of clinical, psychosocial, and physical activity-based interventions is essential to advance more holistic, humanized, and sustainable healthcare practices.

This Special Issue explores interdisciplinary approaches and implementation experiences that integrate psychosocial factors, healthy lifestyles, and strategies oriented toward psychological well-being in the context of primary care and health education. It aims to bring together research examining integrated clinical protocols, collaborative and interdisciplinary models of care, real-world implementation experiences, evolving professional roles in primary care, and the legal, organizational, and financial conditions that enable the development of sustainable and person-centered healthcare systems.

Dr. Silvia San Román Mata
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • primary care
  • mental health
  • physical health
  • integrated care
  • psychosocial factors
  • physical activity
  • health promotion
  • psychological well-being
  • humanized healthcare

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 496 KB  
Article
Associations Between Physical Activity Intensity, Resilience, Self-Esteem and Health-Related Quality of Life in University Students: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach
by Zhangyu Yang, Gracia Cristina Villodres, Jianfei Ye, Xing Zhang, Li Huang and José Joaquín Muros
Healthcare 2026, 14(11), 1438; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14111438 - 22 May 2026
Viewed by 234
Abstract
Background: University students often face significant psychological challenges and lifestyle disruptions that may compromise their mental resources and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Although associations between physical activity (PA) and mental health have been widely reported, few studies have integrated different PA [...] Read more.
Background: University students often face significant psychological challenges and lifestyle disruptions that may compromise their mental resources and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Although associations between physical activity (PA) and mental health have been widely reported, few studies have integrated different PA intensities, sedentary behavior, and psychological resources jointly related in one analytical model. Objective: This study investigated the relationships among vigorous (VPA), moderate (MPA), and light (LPA) physical activity, sedentary behavior (SB), resilience (RES), self-esteem (SE), and HRQoL in a sample of Chinese university students. Methods: A cross-sectional survey included 1560 university students from six universities in China, with a mean age of 19.43 ± 1.15 years; the sample comprised 434 males (27.8%) and 1126 females (72.2%). Relationships among the variables were tested using path analysis within a structural equation modeling framework. Results: Greater PA engagement was related to higher RES, SE, and HRQoL, whereas SB was not significantly associated with RES. All three PA intensities were positively associated with RES, although the magnitude of these associations varied. In addition, RES was also related to higher SE and HRQoL, and SE was related to higher HRQoL. Conclusions: These findings suggest that PA is associated with psychological resources and HRQoL among university students. Longitudinal and intervention studies are needed to determine the directionality and mechanisms underlying these relationships. Full article
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