A biopsychosocial model for the management of patients with sickle-cell disease transitioning to adult medical care

Adv Ther. 2015 Apr;32(4):293-305. doi: 10.1007/s12325-015-0197-1. Epub 2015 Apr 2.

Abstract

The lifespan of patients with sickle-cell disease (SCD) continues to increase, and most affected individuals in high-resource countries now live into adulthood. This necessitates a successful transition from pediatric to adult health care. Care for transitioning patients with SCD often falls to primary care providers who may not be fully aware of the many challenges and issues faced by patients and the current management strategies for SCD. In this review, we aim to close the knowledge gap between primary care providers and specialists who treat transitioning patients with SCD. We describe the challenges and issues encountered by these patients, and we propose a biopsychosocial multidisciplinary approach to the management of the identified issues. Examples of this approach, such as transition-focused integrated care models and quality improvement collaboratives, with the potential to improve health outcomes in adulthood are also described.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Anemia, Sickle Cell / complications
  • Anemia, Sickle Cell / mortality
  • Anemia, Sickle Cell / psychology
  • Anemia, Sickle Cell / therapy*
  • Child
  • Disease Management*
  • Humans
  • Insurance Coverage
  • Insurance, Health
  • Interpersonal Relations
  • Life Expectancy
  • Medication Adherence
  • Pain Management
  • Patient Care Team
  • Primary Health Care / organization & administration*
  • Social Work
  • Transition to Adult Care / organization & administration*