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The RCN hosted a policy seminar on 24 September 2013 attended by a number of executive nurses and directors of nursing (held under the Chatham House rule), to discuss the facilitators and barriers to creating an integrated health and social care system, and to share some international examples of integrated care to inform the debate. This briefing provides an overview of the seminar discussion. 

As discussed, the RCN is already involved in a broad remit of work encompassing the integration agenda. Understanding how these pieces of work connect is critical. Over the coming months, the RCN will continue to monitor policy developments in the integration of health care and social care, while working to provide linkages across various work streams. This will include areas such as the future funding of social care work (and thinking beyond the Dilnot Commission’s work) and coverage of the ratings review; as well as continuing to look at international comparisons as a way of broadening our knowledge of the best way forward, to deliver more effective, patient-centred care. The policy seminar will help to inform future work.