Financing challenges for person-centred healthcare systems

Person-centred healthcare becomes relevant and creates a logical succession in the development process of the healthcare systems. Consequently, the question arises as to the suitability of current healthcare financing models for person-centred health care. The aim of this study is to conceptually examine the appropriateness of the current healthcare financing concepts for person-centred healthcare. To achieve the aim of this study, a Medline scientific search and institutional literature review was carried out. The papers identified were reviewed following the Synthesis Without Meta-analysis (SWiM) methodology, and classified according to the focus of the healthcare financing and organisational models. Literature review results show, that in recent years, there has been an increasing focus on seeing health care financing as an investment, and usually, the concept of investment is associated with the expected return on investment. It should be noted that the indicators most commonly used in healthcare investment valuation, are focused on determining the future benefit of the patient's current treatment. In these circumstances, financing challenges arise for healthcare of elderly people in the context of a rapidly aging society and increasing life expectancy. This is specifically actual in countries where current seniors' generation lived and paid taxes perennial in a centralised system, without accumulating health insurance entitlements. It could be assumed, that the healthcare financing for this patients' generation should take into account their past investments in productivity of society and determine the present value of these investments. This approach could be in a contemporary context with person-centred healthcare, but simultaneously would require the introducing of new approaches to healthcare financial management, creating such tools as the personal health accounts and budgets, providing individual care packages and services. Person-centred healthcare requires the person-centred financial management and poses new challenges for health financing and organisational systems.