Although medical specialisation can be credited with many of the advancements of modern medicine, it also poses obstacles to the delivery of healthcare. Such obstacles are increasingly prevalent in the treatment of the chronic conditions and poly-morbidities of aging populations, where specialisation can be a barrier to the coordination and cooperation required to provide comprehensive care.
This book specifies these obstacles and clarifies the conditions for overcoming them. It focuses on Advanced Practice Nursing, and benefits from comparisons between French and Japanese situations that have mobilised the authors – both researchers and practitioners – for several years. It argues that APNs can perform the coordinating and cooperation role, but that doing so will require greater institutional openness to innovation, and a systemic change in focus from 'cure' to 'care'.