9th Annual Conference

An emerging mosaic of clinical evidence supports vastly expanded use of group services to deliver optimal care, especially in integrative health and medicine models. The picture is compelling. Many well-researched integrative programs are group delivered. Via group models, access to integrative services among economically-challenged, multi-ethnic populations who cannot otherwise access integrative care is growing. Evidence is emerging of cost-savings and of increased satisfaction among practitioners who have a clinical component of group work. For the values of integrative health, group services offer tremendous alignment.

In this context, an integrative health journal convened one teams of guest editors , advisers and supporting organization to issue a call for papers for a special focus issue on innovation in group delivered services. The teams urged original research, commentary, and/or reviews; sought effectiveness data from innovative models and reports on cost outcomes, payments strategies, and sustainable programs; clarified that models could focus on single or multi-modal methods; invited explorations of translational issues and implementation and improvement research; and sought relevant commentaries, including on policy initiatives. The announced goal: create a volume that "will serve as guidance for increasing appropriate uptake of innovative group services in health-oriented payment and delivery of the future."

In this session, the 3 guest editors will focus particularly on issues related to offering integrative services to the underserved via exploration of the submissions and publication. At the time of this proposal, the closing date is one month away with publication planned for July 2018 so that copies might be available at the conference. The set of submissions is growing amidst a broad set of queries toward a robust volume. Participants will be examining the work at the leading edge of the expansion of group services.

The team includes an individual who has reported on groups for over 20 years, promoting their uptake in the integrative field; a public health doctor in an academic environment with long-term involvement with researching and implementing integrative services from a safety net hospital and engagement with health equity; and a leader of a global NGO focused on group services.

Group visits, research, commentary, implementation, cost, policy

Presentation/Lecture with Discussion: present information and engage the learners in discussion about the material.

None

This session is appropriate for all audiences and skill levels