The Need for Co-Creation of Care with Multi-Morbidity Patients

Background: Primary care delivery for multimorbid patients is complex, due to single disease–oriented guidelines, complex care needs, time constraints and the involvement of multiple healthcare professionals. Co-creation of care, based on the quality of communication and relationships between healthcare professionals and patients, may therefore be valuable. This longitudinal study investigates the relationships of co-creation of care to physical and social well-being and satisfaction with care among multimorbid patients in primary care.
Methods: In 2017 and 2018, longitudinal surveys were conducted among multimorbid patients from seven primary care practices in Noord-Brabant, the Netherlands. Paired sample t-tests and multivariate regression analyses were performed.
Results: Co-creation of care improved significantly over time, as did social well-being and physical well-being but not satisfaction with care. Improvements in co-creation of care from T0 to T1 were associated with social well-being, physical well-being and satisfaction with care.
Conclusions: Thus, investment in co-creation of care by primary care practices may lead to better outcomes for multimorbid patients.