Caring for children with specialized health care needs in the community: the challenges for primary care

People needing intensive and specialized health care are being cared for no w in community settings; this has implications for both primary health care professionals and family carers. This paper draws on research investigatin g how services can be developed to support families caring for children wit h complex health care needs, to consider the challenges facing professional s working in the primary health care sector. Interviews conducted with pare nts, professionals and those who fund and commission specialized health ser vices reveal particular problems in relation to the purchasing and provisio n of short-term care and specialist equipment/therapies in the community. T hese problems need to be addressed if people with specialized needs are to be cared for outside hospitals. The new Primary Care Groups (PCGs) will hav e the opportunity to enhance the provision of these services. Primary care professionals will also need to work in partnership with other sectors of t he health service and with local authority services, at both strategic and operational levels, to develop integrated and coordinated services for this growing group of people.