Home-Based Healthcare for Children with Illness

Dear Colleagues,

International policy documents state that children should be admitted to the hospital only when care cannot be provided at home, and services for care at home for children with short- or long-term, acute or chronic illnesses have increased in recent decades. Home-based healthcare (HBH) provided by home care services for children can be described as care that “substitutes for acute hospital review and/or admission by providing clinical review, support, education and management of the acutely or chronically unwell child in their own home”. HBH further includes care performed by parents and/or other professionals in their home and instruments in interventions aiming at supporting and strengthening self-care, such as by the application of eHealth. However, models for organizing, providing, and financing HBH for children vary internationally and within countries, and the evidence base for how to organize and provide high-quality HBH in different models is limited. Each model brings its strengths and weaknesses, which limits the transferability of knowledge from one model to another, and it is vital to identify aspects of importance for high-quality HBH in different models and contexts. Families with sick children often prefer care at home to hospital care, and HBH is increasing worldwide with limited evidence on how to provide high-quality care in different settings. Papers addressing different aspects of HBH are invited for submission, especially those combining a high academic standard coupled with a practical focus on the family, family members, and other stakeholders’ experiences, interventions, and/or cost-effectiveness in order to deepen the knowledge and evidence base of HBH.

Prof. Inger Kristensson Hallström
Prof. Gudrun Kristjansdottir
Dr. Helena Hansson
Guest Editors

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