The conference served to review progress and address future challenges in the sector, focusing on the objectives of the Strategic Plan for Geriatric and Palliative Care in Catalonia. Aina Plaza, Director General of Health Planning, highlighted the strategic role of intermediate care in Catalonia's new Health Plan: Horizon 2035.
Mireia Llonch, Director of Intermediate Care, emphasized measures to strengthen the integration of care resources, improve accessibility, and consolidate the role of intermediate care in preventing hospital admissions and facilitating post-hospitalization recovery. She also highlighted the importance of home and community care.
Debate panels focused on promoting the attraction and retention of professionals, financing aligned with care objectives, and the deployment of innovative initiatives. Experiences on citizen participation in service design were also shared.
The need to move towards a model based on shared responsibility across all care levels was stressed to address demographic challenges, particularly population aging, and to improve prevention, functional autonomy, and quality of life.
The closing remarks were delivered by Ignasi Carrasco, Director of the CatSalut Care Area, who advocated for the strategic role of intermediate care for individuals with moderate or advanced frailty. A call was made to rethink care models towards an approach centered on people's needs.
