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Definition

health related period during which healthcare activities are performed to address one health issue as identified by one healthcare professional[

 

This is a concrete item and can be implemented directly

Term: episode of care; 
Synonym: health issue related episode; episode of healthcare; 
Plural: episodes of care; 

Notes

NOTE 1 An episode of care encompasses all healthcare activity period elements related to the same health issue.

NOTE 2 An episode of care starts with the very first contact with a healthcare provider for a health issue and it ends after the completion of all healthcare activities related to the last contact with that healthcare provider for the same health issue.

NOTE 3 For practical reasons (e.g. the need to state start and end dates) and also because it relates specifically to a health issue defined by a given healthcare professional, an episode of care does not necessarily coincide with an 'episode of illness' (or of disease, or of any other kind of health issue).

NOTE 4 During a mandated period of care several health issues may be handled and as such be linked to several episodes of care. These episodes of care are said to be 'concurrent'.

Examples

EXAMPLES An episode of urinary tract infection, an episode of cholecystectomy.

Diagrammatic representation

Simple graph - episode of care

Required associations

exactly one healthcare provider manages a number of episodes of care
exactly one episode of care one or more healthcare activity period elements
a number of episodes of care is centred on exactly one health issue

Optional associations

one or more episodes of care a number of episodes of care bundles

Generalisations

    health related period
episode of care

Specialisations

episode of care
    health approach