Exploration of potential barriers for the acceptance of an interdisciplinary cross-sectoral care network for patients with Parkinson's disease

Introduction The ParkinsonNetwork Eastern Saxony (PANOS) aims to establish an intersectoral, path-based and platform-supported care concept in order to support comprehensive care with adequate therapies despite the increasing number of patients to be treated. Objective Which barriers may limit the acceptance and successful implementation of PANOS? Methods Implementation barriers were identified through a selective literature review and prioritized in an online survey of 36 project-associated neurologists and general practitioners. The results were analyzed anonymously and descriptively. Results Thirteen potential implementation barriers were identified. Eleven neurologists and seven general practitioners participated in the online survey. The surveyed neurologists assessed double documentation and inadequate communication and cooperation between the service providers as the biggest obstacles to the acceptance of PANOS. General practitioners rated the restrictions for prescription and budget and the potentially high time expenditure required for network activities as barriers. Discussion Double documentation of patient and treatment data is time consuming and prone to errors. Adequate financial compensation could increase service providers' willingness to participate in such measures. In addition, the prescribing behavior of general practitioners may be influenced positively by the use of intervention-related accounting numbers. The results indicate a need for integrative technical system solutions and intersectoral documentation structures in order to reduce the additional effort for service providers. Conclusion Analyzing the influencing factors of the PANOS network, and raising the awareness of all participating service providers to potential barriers, are decisive measures for the acceptance of the care network. Targeted measures to reduce and avoid identified barriers can increase user acceptance and optimize treatment results.