Lengthy waiting times have been a problem in Swedish health services for many years. In 1992, Sweden implemented a national maximum waiting-time guarantee (MWG) through an agreement between the Swedish Government and the Federation of Swedish County Councils. The “guarantee” assured patients that the waiting time between the decision-to-treat and the treatment itself would not exceed three months. The national MWG covered twelve different treatments/interventions and remained in force for five years. This dissertation describes the genesis of the MWG, its implementation, and its effects. Four papers serve as a foundation for the dissertation. Paper I describes how the guarantee was implemented during the first two years. Paper II studies the impact that the MWG had on cataract surgery. Paper III uses the results of two questionnaire surveys of department heads to explain why the MWG, although successfully launched, became increasingly difficult to maintain. Paper IV analyses data from the national cataract register to determine how production and waiting times in cataract surgery were affected by termination of the MWG. This dissertation confirms that waiting time for health care is a complex phenomenon resulting from multiple causes. “Guarantees” are of particular interest because they define what constitutes too long in reference to waiting times. Beyond that, they are only a framework for developing a plan of action. The positive effects of the MWG were transient and based on rationalisation, introduction of new technology, and stricter prioritisation. The MWG contributed towards empowering patients and slowing the expansion of treatment indications, but it was unsuccessful in levelling out the wide regional variations in surgical rates.

<p>The aims of this licentiate thesis were to explore and describe female and male patients’ conceptions of integrity within health care and to illuminate the conceptions from a gender as well as a personal space boundary perspective. A qualitative design with a phenomenographic approach was used. The participants, 17 male (Study I) and 15 female patients (Study II), all of whom had undergone medical or surgical care, were strategically selected and interviewed. The identified conceptions were also analysed from a gender as well as a personal space boundary perspective.</p><p>Three description categories emerged among the male patients (Study I); self-respect, dignity and confidence, while maintaining the self, dignity and confidence were the description categories found among the female patients (Study II). Male patients’ description of self-respect and female patients’ description of maintaining the self were for the most part similar although there were some differences. The conceptions revealed that integrity involves having the courage to set boundaries and having control over the private sphere, one’s self and one’s situation. While the male patients emphasised selfbelief and being alone, their female counterparts stressed that preserving one’s identity was essential in order to maintain the self. Dignity concerned being respected, and the male patients also described dignity as being seen as a trustworthy and whole person, while the women described it as not being exposed. Both male and female patients described confidence, which was related to handling patient information in a confidential way, trusting the professional caregivers, participating as well as balancing or changing the boundaries of integrity if necessary. The male patients also described confidence as being free.</p><p>The personal space boundary perspective was useful for explaining the process of respecting the self by opening or closing outgoing and incoming boundaries around the self. The patients had to consider who, when and to what degree others should have access to their personal spaces. The way in which the professional caregivers interacted with the patient influenced the openness of the boundaries.</p>

<p>This study proposes that poor understanding of the structures, processes and outcomes of organisations seriously hampers collaboration between professional groups in care organisations. Three care settings were investigated: follow-up of patients with heart disease, an intensive care unit and care services for older people.</p><p>The overall aim was to investigate how people understand structures, processes and outcomes in care organisations. The participants were patients, patient representatives, healthcare professionals, managers and politicians.</p><p>A qualitative approach was used. Thematic analysis and grounded theory were employed in analysing the data.</p><p>Despite considerable efforts, no major changes took place over a 7-year period as to how cardiac follow-up services were understood. The system of cardiac follow-up services was found fragmented in its organisation and in the way individuals understood it. The results indicate that care professionals, patients and leaders have dissimilar understandings. The data suggest that care is organised from a professional-centred perspective rather than from a holistic worldview of the patients’ total context. Leaders in intensive care perceive their organisation as a learning organisation. However, in daily work healthcare tends to function to what can be described as a mass production approach to care. This state of conflict caused confusion and chaos among the leaders. The municipal elderly care services and the county council’s geriatric organisation had difficulties in co-ordination. Older people were perceived as passive recipients of healthcare, rather than as consumers whose well being and outcome were a reflection to the quality of the service.</p><p>The study concludes that despite the major changes that have taken place in the Swedish health and elderly care organisations over the past years, healthcare professionals’ understanding of their work has gone largely unchanged. Their understanding of care structures and processes did not change despite outside pressures. Lack of understanding of what others understand hampers development with the result that care organisations risk stagnation.</p>

<p>The present thesis follows an intensive care unit during four year of hard work and demanding organisational changes (1998-2001). The changes were mainly initiated by diminishing resources and a legislative claim to pay regard to the quality aspect of health care service. The process of implementing a quality system was the main focus for the thesis. Triangulation was used aiming at explore the process from different views. Two interviews studies were conducted one with the staff and another with the leadership. Both interviews were analysed thematically combined with a phenomenographic technique (e.g. using the how, and what aspect). A longitudinal quasi experimental time-series study was also accomplished. The correlation between staff variables and workload were measured once a year. The result show a 20 % increase in workload per staff and year. The staff judged the organisational climate for innovativeness stable over the period. Sick leave increased, and more so, than the general trend in the society. In spite of this increase the prevalence of stress related symptoms was the same. Two different systems emerged, a complex adaptive system and a mechanical system. The two systems exist and functions intertwined. Because of the construction of the patient register it is possible to see that the situation around a patients being admitted ≥ 5 days functions according to the complex systems character while the situation around the acute patients functions according to a mechanical system. Sick leave correlated with number of patient admitted ≥ 5 days (P=,000). It seemed the problem found had its root in the unawareness of the existing of a complex system. The result has implications for a need of increased awareness about how to manage the situation when the ICU is functioning according to the complex adaptive system.</p>

This study proposes that poor understanding of the structures, processes and outcomes of organisations seriously hampers collaboration between professional groups in care organisations. Three care settings were investigated: follow-up of patients with heart disease, an intensive care unit and care services for older people. The overall aim was to investigate how people understand structures, processes and outcomes in care organisations. The participants were patients, patient representatives, healthcare professionals, managers and politicians. A qualitative approach was used. Thematic analysis and grounded theory were employed in analysing the data. Despite considerable efforts, no major changes took place over a 7-year period as to how cardiac follow-up services were understood. The system of cardiac follow-up services was found fragmented in its organisation and in the way individuals understood it. The results indicate that care professionals, patients and leaders have dissimilar understandings. The data suggest that care is organised from a professional-centred perspective rather than from a holistic worldview of the patients’ total context. Leaders in intensive care perceive their organisation as a learning organisation. However, in daily work healthcare tends to function to what can be described as a mass production approach to care. This state of conflict caused confusion and chaos among the leaders. The municipal elderly care services and the county council’s geriatric organisation had difficulties in co-ordination. Older people were perceived as passive recipients of healthcare, rather than as consumers whose well being and outcome were a reflection to the quality of the service. The study concludes that despite the major changes that have taken place in the Swedish health and elderly care organisations over the past years, healthcare professionals’ understanding of their work has gone largely unchanged. Their understanding of care structures and processes did not change despite outside pressures. Lack of understanding of what others understand hampers development with the result that care organisations risk stagnation.

The present thesis follows an intensive care unit during four year of hard work and demanding organisational changes (1998-2001). The changes were mainly initiated by diminishing resources and a legislative claim to pay regard to the quality aspect of health care service. The process of implementing a quality system was the main focus for the thesis. Triangulation was used aiming at explore the process from different views. Two interviews studies were conducted one with the staff and another with the leadership. Both interviews were analysed thematically combined with a phenomenographic technique (e.g. using the how, and what aspect). A longitudinal quasi experimental time-series study was also accomplished. The correlation between staff variables and workload were measured once a year. The result show a 20 % increase in workload per staff and year. The staff judged the organisational climate for innovativeness stable over the period. Sick leave increased, and more so, than the general trend in the society. In spite of this increase the prevalence of stress related symptoms was the same. Two different systems emerged, a complex adaptive system and a mechanical system. The two systems exist and functions intertwined. Because of the construction of the patient register it is possible to see that the situation around a patients being admitted ≥ 5 days functions according to the complex systems character while the situation around the acute patients functions according to a mechanical system. Sick leave correlated with number of patient admitted ≥ 5 days (P=,000). It seemed the problem found had its root in the unawareness of the existing of a complex system. The result has implications for a need of increased awareness about how to manage the situation when the ICU is functioning according to the complex adaptive system.