The Role of Collaborative Healthcare in Improving Social Sustainability: A Conceptual Framework

Tahereh Maghsoudi, Rosalía Cascón-Pereira and Ana Beatriz Hernández Lara
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Tahereh Maghsoudi: Business Management Department, Faculty of Business and Economy, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43204 Reus, Spain
Rosalía Cascón-Pereira: Business Management Department, Faculty of Business and Economy, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43204 Reus, Spain
Ana Beatriz Hernández Lara: Business Management Department, Faculty of Business and Economy, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43204 Reus, Spain

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 8, 1-15

Abstract: Healthcare systems around the world face both increasing demands and inequality in service distribution. The current trend is for collaboration among healthcare actors, named as collaborative healthcare, in order to address challenges such as these to improve the social sustainability of the system. That is to provide accessible and equitable healthcare services to meet people’s health and well-being needs. Based on an integrative literature review, this study aims at crafting a conceptual framework to explore how collaborative healthcare networks contribute to social sustainability and the specific actors involved in these collaborations. It identifies relationships between different collaborative healthcare networks and social sustainability. Interprofessional networks have been the most studied in relation to social sustainability. Communication and sharing information or knowledge have been identified as used collaborative healthcare practices. This study contributes theoretically by considering a new model of the healthcare organization in which collaborative networks play a central role in improving social sustainability. In terms of practical implications, the study provides managers and policy makers with investment insights on a range of collaborative networks and practices.

Keywords: collaboration; collaborative healthcare; sustainability; social sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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