Un modèle de soins et services en gérontopsychiatrie : quelles conditions pour une intégration en région

This memoir discusses the integration of a subspecialized offer of care: geriatric psychiatry in the healthcare system for older people with mental disorders in Quebec. The general objective of this study is to do a in-depth analysis of factors favoring the emergence of subspecialized geriatric psychiatry practice and its implementation, to deduce recommendations for its development.  First, we analyzed the supporting strengths enabling the establishment of this new clinical practice, thirty years ago, in the Eastern Townships. Next, we identified the combined dynamic of clinical, organizational and symbolic factors which supported the institutionalization of this new practice. Then, we have identified the combined dynamic of the clinic, organizational and symbolic factors having supported the institutionalization of this new practice. From this analysis, we have deducted recommendations for the development of this practice in the Drummondville local healthcare network, then in Mauricie-Centre-du-Québec. Our data gathering is based on individual and group meetings, non-participating observations, and the analysis of documents. The information is presented in the form of case studies, permitting to bring alive contributions from leading authors who enlightened the dynamic integration of this new discipline (Abbott, 1995, 1999; Mintzberg, 1985, 1998; Nonaka, 1994). Fourteen recommendations emerge from this study. The first four dealt with the definition of geriatric psychiatry entity as well as its dissemination in professional and organizational spaces. The next five dealt with the support of the dynamic construction which can be summarized by the following: building links within the clinical and organizational environment. Four recommendations aim to facilitate the institutionalization of this new practice in an organizational dynamic. It is a question of fully engaging oneself as a "champion" (Mintzberg, 1998), from a core where the leadership is shared, to request spaces for the creation and the alignment of the clinical and organizational logics. The final recommendation is to support the geriatric psychiatry recognition process in the province of Quebec. This study permits the generation of some learning. The first one is to highlight that universal models to improve organization do not exist. Only contextualized benchmarks, through an in-depth analysis, will allow us to identify and use promising environmental strengths. Afterwards, we will be able to use them for the identification of clinical, organizational and symbolic dynamics involved. The answer provided then will always be adapted.  The second learning emerged from testing our conceptual model. This enabled us to realize that we could not use clinical, organizational and symbolic factors of integration in separate boxes, as presented in our initial theoretical model. It is rather in using a spiral nesting representation, such as the one proposed by Nonaka (1994), called an «hypertext» system, that we were able to find the needed benchmarks, within the global conceptualization of the interference of factors between them. We therefore consider that the results, expressed in the recommendations supporting the emergence and the development of geriatric psychiatry in Drummondville, may be of relevance in another region, with the express condition that the local and environmental contexts be analyzed.

Keyphrases: Geriatric psychiatry, Subspecialized care integration, Organizational model of subspecialized care, Change management, Interprofessional practice