Table 2 Key concepts related to bridging aging and disability

Prerequisites for bridging

Knowledge [10]

Specific areas of knowledge that are required to develop policy or support service delivery/enhancement for individuals aging with disability.

Frameworks, models, theories [6]

Specific models and/or theories influencing beliefs regarding aging and/or disability, change processes, and/or service delivery/policy needs.

Funding models [20]

Financial support that mandates or supports work involving aging and disability knowledge / teams / or targets issues and outcomes relevant to both groups or enables program delivery or evaluation.

Policy [12]

Policy which mandates closer collaboration / joint planning across aging and disability.

Supportive culture [17]

Culture of an organization (including attitudes, beliefs, values, actions) which in this case are supportive of innovation, collaboration, and change.

Bridging tasks

Liaison [3]

Communication or cooperation that facilitates a close working relationship between people or organizations.

Research and evaluation [17]

Activities designed to produce new knowledge or make judgements about the merit, or significance of a subject, or to provide an assessment of need or of a problem to be addressed.

Monitoring/ surveillance [7]

Ongoing, systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of health-related data to support the planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health practice.

Training [8]

Teaching, enhancing or developing skills through context specific practice.

Mentoring [3]

Relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable person.

Education [13]

Providing structured information in a manner conducive to improving knowledge about matters related to health and/or functioning and/or service systems.

Adapting services, or systems, to make services accessible to individuals with disability [23]

Adapting service model and/or removing barriers that prevent people accessing services, e.g. cultural, socioeconomic, physical barriers.

Establishing health (related) services [15]

Providing health services and/or infrastructure where they were previously absent or inadequate to meet a specified population health need.

Advocacy [20]

Mediating or arguing in the interest or on behalf of a person or group or population in relation to a particular matter.

Advising [5]

Recommending a course of action in relation to changing or maintaining function, environments or behaviour.

Partnerships/collaboration (82)^a

Working together and cooperating with the person/client, health providers, and other relevant stakeholders.

Planning [13]

Planning future interventions and/or working with stakeholders to develop their goals and identify strategies for achieving those goals.

Awareness raising [7]

Promoting messages on a health or related topic, on areas of overlap between aging and disability, unique or specific issues, and of gaps in knowledge, policy, practice.

Policy change [4]

Developing new or modifying existing policies (could be at an organizational level or broader e.g., provincial or federal)

Policy development [11]

A process that involves specifying core concepts, desired policy outcomes and current knowledge on the issues to be addressed.

Care coordination [29]

Navigating and facilitating the access, management and cohesion of services and supports for the client.

Facilitation [37]^a

Making the process easier, identify gaps, anticipate problems, help remove or negotiate barriers, and promote safe and effective connections to services and appropriate use of resources.

Individualized client planning [10]

Working with the person to develop an individual proposal including setting client goals and priorities, and identifying actions, responsibilities and supports needed (services and resources) to achieve the goals.

Assessment [14]

Evaluating the client’s health condition, functioning, environment, behaviour, situation or need for intervention.

Navigation [10]

Finding the most appropriate pathway through systems, services, resources and supports for the client given their context.

Referral [10]

The action of sending someone to see another person or place for consultation, review or further action, help or advice.

Training and skills development [39]^a

Teaching, enhancing or developing skills through context-specific practice, to clients or others in their circle of care.