Integrating social care with general practices, community nurses, hospitals and social services can improve the quality of care for patients, a study by the Department of Health has found.
More joined up health services and social care was also well liked by staff and reduced hospital costs.
The two-year study considered the impact of better integrated care on elderly people at risk of emergency hospital admissions and the treatment of conditions including dementia and mental health problems.
It analysed staff and patient views on the work of the pilots as well as the impact on hospital admissions and lengths of stay in hospital.
The study found: 60% of staff thought they worked more closely with other team members; 72% of staff reported better communication with other organisations; 84% of staff said their job had expanded, with 64% saying their role had become more interesting.
Overall, 54% of staff thought patient care had improved as a result of the pilot.
The study also found that hospital care was needed less for patients of those pilots. For those patients, outpatient visits fell by 22% and planned admissions by 21%. Consequently, savings of 9% were made in the overall costs of hospital care.
Dr Richard Lewis, Partner at Ernst & Young, and co-leader of the research says: "These evaluation results provide grounds for optimism that integrated care will deliver at least some of the hoped for benefits. The issue of poor care integration has long been highlighted as a key fault line in the NHS and the wider care system so these findings are significant.
"However, this optimism must be cautious at this stage. Change takes time and, it may still be too early to provide a complete picture of the outcomes of integrated care."
