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Chapter 20 - Group Consultations and Community-Integrated Care

from Section 4 - Clinical Skills in Lifestyle Medicine

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2025

By
Emily Symington  and
Fraser Birrell
Edited by
Richard Pinder ,
Christopher-James Harvey  and
Ellen Fallows
Richard Pinder
Affiliation:
Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London
Christopher-James Harvey
Affiliation:
Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London
Ellen Fallows
Affiliation:
British Society of Lifestyle Medicine
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Summary

Group consultations are a form of community-integrated care that involve patients with similar health issues meeting with a clinician in a group setting. This approach enhances self-care and co-production, as patients learn from each other and participate in shared decision making. Group consultations have been shown to improve patient activation and evidence-based outcomes for long-term conditions such as diabetes and COPD, often at lower costs than individual consultations. Group consultations can be delivered in different ways, depending on the needs and preferences of the patients and the clinicians, including virtual sessions that allow for holistic care in the home environment. Case studies from various settings illustrate the effectiveness of group consultations in managing conditions like hypertension and diabetes. Group consultations are therefore a valuable method that combines the best of traditional care with the advantages of peer support and education, leading to better health outcomes in an efficient way.

Keywords

Group consultationsLifestyle MedicineSelf-careCommunity-integrated careBehaviour changePatient activationHealth outcomesCo-productionChronic conditionsVirtual group consultations
Type
Chapter
Information
Essential Lifestyle Medicine , pp. 220 - 228
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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