Technical Series on Safer Primary Care: Multimorbidity

Overview

People often live with many health conditions. Ageing populations and the increase in long-term conditions mean that the number of people with multiple health conditions is set to rise. This “multimorbidity” or the coexistence of two or more chronic conditions in the same individual has a specific impact on safety issues in primary care. To improve safety in primary care, it is essential to take into account care of people with multiple health conditions. Multimorbidity is also more common in disadvantaged groups, thus contributing to health inequalities.

This monograph provides an overview of the issues and some potential solutions for consideration by the World Health Organization (WHO) Member States.