title: Clinical pathways or case management.
abstract: Clinical pathways are increasingly being used internationally as a mechanism for managing patient care to achieve improved outcomes with more efficient resource use. They are a structured templates guiding multi-professional treatment and care for specific patient groups or procedures, through a sequence of essential treatment and care steps based on the best available evidence. This paper defines clinical pathways, describes their historical context and application, and discusses benefits and concerns about their use.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Birmingham Trust, Birmingham, B15 2PE, UK.
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Ariotti
mesh_terms: D019090:Case Management; D019091:Critical Pathways; D003953:Diagnosis-Related Groups; D006801:Humans; D010348:Patient Care Team; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic